Israeli firm?s spyware linked to attacks on websites in UK and Middle East

Researchers have found new evidence that suggests spyware made by an Israeli company that was recently blacklisted in the US has been used to target critics of Saudi Arabia and other autocratic regimes, including some readers of a London-based news website.

Candiru and NSO Group, a much more prominent Israeli surveillance company, were both added to a US blacklist this month after the Biden administration took the rare step of accusing the firms of acting against US national security interests.

Middle East Eye condemned the attacks. In a statement, its editor-in-chief, David Hearst, said the outlet was no stranger to attempts to take the website down by state and non-state actors.

At the time, Candiru declined to comment.

There is little public information available about Candiru, which was founded in 2014 and has undergone several name changes. In 2017 the company was selling its malware to clients in the Gulf, western Europe and Asia, according to a lawsuit reported in an Israeli newspaper. Candiru may have deals with Uzbekistan, Saudi Arabia and the UAE, Forbes has reported.

Candiru has not commented on its placement on the entity list.