India looking to acquire Pegasus-style spyware, Financial Times reports

The Indian government is scouring the globe for spyware it could use that’s “lower profile” than Pegasus, the advanced Israeli surveillance software that can eavesdrop even on encrypted WhatSapp and Signal conversations, the Financial Times (FT) has reported.

The FT said about a dozen makers of surveillance software companies are likely to put in bids in the coming weeks. The government is willing to spend anywhere up to $120 million to obtain the software, according to the newspaper which said it had spoken to people familiar with the matter. India’s defence ministry declined to comment on the report, the newspaper said.

The government has never acknowledged using Pegasus which is made by the NSO Group and a Supreme Court committee said it found no evidence of Pegasus being employed.