The company WhatsApp reported thwarting a major hacker attack in December 2024, affecting about 90 people, including journalists. As Reuters writes, the hack was planned to be carried out using malicious PDF files that the organizers of the hacker attack sent to groups in the messenger. Victims did not need to open the files to infect their devices.
WhatsApp states that the attack was linked to the company Paragon — an Israeli spyware manufacturer, which was acquired by the American private investment company AE Industrial Partners in December of the previous year.
The attack targeted people from different countries, particularly journalists and representatives of civil society. WhatsApp determined that the hackers specifically targeted several individuals from European countries.
The publication TechCrunch noted that this is the first instance where Paragon has been linked to such abuses. Since its founding in 2019, the company has managed to avoid scandals, unlike other spyware manufacturers — Intellexa and NSO Group.