Case Background

This case came before Judge Phyllis J. Hamilton in the federal court in Oakland, California. The Plaintiffs, WhatsApp Inc. and Facebook Inc., sued NSO Group Technologies and Q Cyber Technologies. The complaint stated that NSO Group created and used surveillance software called “Pegasus” to hack approximately 1,400 mobile phones between April and May 2019. The hacking targeted attorneys, activists, journalists, and diplomats. Plaintiffs argued that NSO violated federal and state anti‑hacking laws, their Terms of Service, and caused serious damage to their computer servers.

The cause that led to the dispute

The case centred on NSO Group’s use of malware disguised as ordinary calls. The software bypassed WhatsApp’s security measures and infected phones, extracting data such as texts, voice calls, and files. WhatsApp and Facebook claimed that this was unauthorised access that violated the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA), the California Comprehensive Computer Data Access and Fraud Act, and breac