A U.S. federal judge has approved Meta-owned WhatsApp’s motion for a permanent order preventing Israeli cyberintelligence firm NSO Group from attacking users of the messaging platform. At the same time, the judge significantly lowered the amount NSO Group owes Meta.
Earlier this year, a jury found that the cyberintelligence firm should pay Meta over $167 million after a 2019 incident that affected more than 1,400 WhatsApp accounts, including those of journalists and human rights defenders.
But on Friday, U.S. District Judge Phyllis Hamilton determined that there was insufficient proof to show NSO Group’s actions were “especially egregious,” and therefore limited punitive damages to a 9-to-1 ratio, bringing the total payment down to about $4 million.
In a statement shared with Courthouse News Service, WhatsApp chief Will Cathart said the decision “permanently prohibits NSO, a spyware developer, from ever attacking WhatsApp or our worldwide user base again.”
“We welcome this outcome, which follows six years of legal proceedings to ensure NSO is held responsible for targeting civil society members,” Cathart stated.
NSO Group has recently announced that it is being purchased by American investors.
