A second co-founder of Mediterranea Saving Humans, an Italian NGO aiding migrants, has come forward as a victim of the Paragon spyware campaign targeting WhatsApp users. Beppe Caccia revealed the breach following a similar disclosure by fellow co-founder Luca Casarini.
Casarini has filed a complaint with Italian authorities to investigate the attack, claiming that neither he nor his organization has anything to hide. Prior to Caccia, three other individuals, including a news website director and an immigration activist, had reported receiving notifications of the spyware.
WhatsApp initially alerted approximately 90 individuals to the campaign without disclosing the responsible government. After confirming the campaign’s disruption, WhatsApp has not commented on the identity of the client that contracted Paragon for this operation.
The Italian government has denied involvement in the hacking incident, emphasizing that journalists and other protected individuals were not targeted by Italian intelligence agencies. However, Meta has revealed that non-Italian targets were located in several European countries, including Austria, Belgium, and Denmark. Most of these countries have not responded to requests for comment.
An additional victim, David Yambio, co-founder of the NGO Refugees in Libya, has reported being targeted by a separate spyware campaign. Yambio was notified by Apple in November, raising questions about a potential connection to the Paragon operation.
Representatives from Paragon and the Italian government have not responded to requests for comment. The ongoing investigation seeks to uncover the extent of the spyware campaign and identify the responsible parties.
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