Bhima Koregaon violence: Nine working for release of accused were targets of spyware, says Amnesty report

Nine activists working for the release of those imprisoned after the Bhima Koregaon violence were targeted with malicious emails in 2019, an Amnesty International report in partnership with Citizen Lab has found.

Three of these nine were also targeted by Pegasus Software through their WhatsApp applications last year. The emails contained links that, when opened, install a spyware called NetWire.

“That some of these individuals were targeted multiple times shows that there is a disturbing pattern of spyware attacks against human rights defenders (HRDs) involved in the Bhima Koregaon case,” the report said.