Pegasus spyware is one of the most powerful spyware ever. Once this spyware worms its way into your phone, it can convert your phone into a 24/7 surveillance device. Moreover, you won’t even know it’s on your phone. Read to find out everything about Pegasus.
What is Pegasus?
Pegasus is software with a single focus on spying and collecting information. The spyware is marketed, developed, and licensed to governments around the globe by NSO Group, an Israeli company. It can infect billions of phones quickly. Additionally, the spyware can target both Android and iOS phones. The software was first detected in 2016 and spread through malicious links.
How does Pegasus spyware get into your phone?
It is very easy to install this spyware on your phone. Like most viruses, the spyware gets in through vulnerabilities in apps and through clicking malicious links. “When an iPhone is compromised, it’s done in such a way that allows the attacker to obtain so-called root privileges, or administrative privileges, on the device. Pegasus can do more than what the owner of the device can do,” said Claudio Guarnieri. Guarnieri is the CEO is Amnesty International’s Security lab.
According to reports from NSO, the company has invested a lot of time and work in making this spyware difficult to detect. Moreover, Pegasus infections are hard to identify. Security researchers believe that the latest versions of the spyware are located in the phone’s temporary memory. Hence, once the phone is powered down, all traces of the software vanish.
What is Pegasus capable of?
The spyware can theoretically harvest all the data stored on your phone and forward it back to the attacker. This includes data from your emails, SMS, WhatsApp chats, Contacts, Calendar, photos, and GPS details. Additionally, it can also activate your camera. microphone and location. The spyware is also capable of recording your phone calls.