DHS says ICE has 'no relationship' with spyware maker Paragon Solutions

ICE reactivated a previously paused contract with Paragon Solutions, a spyware maker, raising questions about whether ICE used commercial spyware to remotely hack cell phones and whether the arrangement complied with a 2023 executive order. The executive order bars federal agencies from purchasing commercial spyware that poses significant security risks or could be misused by foreign governments. DHS later stated that ICE has no current relationship or contract with Paragon Solutions or the company that acquired it. Paragon Solutions’ Graphite tool can infiltrate devices and access encrypted messages without targets clicking links. Commercial spyware has been used by foreign governments against political opponents, journalists, and civil society, including a Graphite-linked scandal involving WhatsApp users in multiple countries.

"Immigration and Customs Enforcement reactivated a previously paused contract with spyware maker Paragon Solutions last year, which raised questions about whether the agency was using commercial spyware to remotely hack into cell phones and if the deal complied with a 2023 executive order. But now the Department of Homeland Security says ICE has no current contract or relationship with the Israeli-founded company, which is best known for making a spyware tool called Graphite that can be used to remotely infiltrate devices and access encrypted messages without targets needing to click a link."

"ICE first entered into a contract with the U.S. subsidiary of Paragon Solutions in 2024 for an unspecified product. But the Biden administration swiftly put the contract on hold to decide whether it complied with a 2023 executive order barring federal agencies from purchasing commercial spyware that poses a significant security risk to the U.S. or risk of misuse by foreign governments."

"Governments have targeted opponents with spyware Foreign governments have repeatedly used commercial spyware to spy on political rivals, journalists, human rights workers and other members of civil society. American politicians and officials have also been targeted, which prompted the Biden administration to take steps to push back on the industry."

"Paragon Solutions' Graphite tool was central to a government spying scandal in Italy that first came to light early last year after Meta-owned WhatsApp found some 90 users of its messaging app, including journalists and activists, had been targeted with Graphite in various countries. Researchers at The Citizen Lab at the University of Toronto and Italian prosecutors have confirmed Italian journalists and activists were among those targeted with Graphite."

Read at www.npr.org