BOSTON: French President Emmanuel Macron leads a list of 14 current or former heads of state, including Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan, who may have been targeted for hacking by clients of the notorious Israeli spyware firm NSO Group, Amnesty International said Tuesday.
“The unprecedented revelation ... should send a chill down the spine of world leaders,” Amnesty’s secretary general, Agnes Callamard, said in a statement.
Among potential targets found on a list of 50,000 phone numbers leaked to Amnesty and the Paris-based journalism nonprofit Forbidden Stories include Presidents Cyril Ramaphosa of South Africa and Barham Salih of Iraq. King Mohammed VI of Morocco and three current prime ministers — Imran Khan of Pakistan, Mustafa Madbouly of Egypt and Saad Eddine El Othmani of Morocco — are also on the list, The Washington Post reported.
The Post said none of the heads of state would offer their smartphones for forensic testing that might have detected whether they were infected by NSO’s military-grade Pegasus spyware. Thirty-seven phones identified in the investigation were either breached or shows signs of attempted infection, it has reported.
The Post and 16 other members of a global media consortium were granted access to the leaked list. Another member, the French daily Le Monde, determined that 15 members of the French government may have been among potential targets with Macron in 2019.
Following first reports by consortium members on Sunday, the Paris prosecutor’s office said it was investigating the suspected widespread use of NSO’s military-grade Pegasus spyware to target journalists, human rights activists and politicians in multiple countries.
Also Sunday, Amnesty released a forensic analysis of the alleged targeting that showed Amazon Web Services was hosting NSO infrastructure. In response, Amazon said it shut down NSO accounts that were “confirmed to be supporting the reported hacking activity.” Amazon said the accounts had violated its terms of use.
Another US company identified by Amnesty as hosting NSO servers was DigitalOcean. When contacted by The Associated Press, DigitalOcean neither confirmed nor denied whether it had identified or cut off such servers.
“All of the infrastructure outlined in the Amnesty report is no longer on DigitalOcean,” it said Tuesday, without elaborating, in an emailed statement.
Le Monde said the phone numbers for Macron and the then-government members were among thousands allegedly selected by NSO clients for potential surveillance. In this case, the client was an unidentified Moroccan security service, according to Le Monde.
Consortium members said they were able to link more than 1,000 numbers in 50 countries on the list with individuals, including more than 600 politicians and government officials and 189 journalists.
Also on the list were phone numbers in Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Pakistan, Morocco and Rwanda, the consortium reported.
An official in Macron’s office said authorities would investigate Le Monde’s report, and if the targeting is proven, it would be “extremely grave.”
Le Monde quoted NSO as saying the French president was never targeted by its clients.
NSO Group has denied that it ever maintained “a list of potential, past or existing targets.” It called the Forbidden Stories report “full of wrong assumptions and uncorroborated theories.”
The source of the leak — and how it was authenticated — has not been disclosed. While a phone number’s presence in the data does not mean an attempt was made to hack a device, the consortium said it was confident the data indicated potential targets of NSO’s government clients.
The Paris prosecutor’s office said in a statement Tuesday that it opened an investigation into a raft of potential charges, including violation of privacy, illegal use of data and illegally selling spyware.
As is common under French law, the investigation doesn’t name a suspected perpetrator but is aimed at determining who might eventually be sent to trial. It was prompted by a legal complaint by two journalists and French investigative website Mediapart.
Multiple lawsuits by alleged victims have been filed against NSO Group including by Facebook over the Israeli firm’s alleged hacking of its WhatsApp application.
Pakistani prime minister among 14 heads of states on potential spyware list
https://arab.news/637b7
Pakistani prime minister among 14 heads of states on potential spyware list
- Presidents Cyril Ramaphosa of South Africa and Barham Salih of Iraq on the list
- King Mohammed VI of Morocco and three current prime ministers are also on the list
Pakistan Cricket Board confirms details of national side’s South Africa tour
- The side will depart for Durban on December 2 after returning from Australia in Nov.
- The ODIs will be played from December 17-22 in Paarl, Cape Town, and Johannesburg
ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on Friday announced details of the Pakistan men’s cricket team’s tour of South Africa for three Twenty20, three one-day international and two Test matches in the second half of 2024.
Durban, Centurion, and Johannesburg will host the T20Is from December 10-14, according to the PCB. The ODIs will be played from December 17-22 in Paarl, Cape Town, and Johannesburg, while the two ICC World Test Championship 2023-25 matches will be held at Centurion (December 26-30) and Cape Town (January 3-7).
The side will depart for Durban on December 2 after returning from Australia on November 19, having featured in a series of three ODIs and three T20Is from November 4-18. After completing their African safari on January 8, Pakistan will take on New Zealand and South Africa in a three-nation ODI tournament on home turf, which will be followed by the eight-team ICC Champions Trophy 2025 in Pakistan.
“Prior to the tours of Australia and South Africa, Pakistan will host Bangladesh and England for two and three Tests, respectively,” the PCB said in a statement. “This means they will play seven Tests, minimum of 10 ODIs, and six T20Is in the six-month period from August 2024 to January 2025.”
This will be Pakistan’s seventh Test tour of South Africa since 1994-95. Their two Test wins were in the 1997-98 and 2006-2007 series.
In the Durban Test in 1997-98, Pakistan won by 29 runs at the back of centuries from Azhar Mahmood (132) and Saeed Anwar (118), match figures of nine for 149 by Mushtaq Ahmed and a first innings five-fer by Shoaib Akhtar. In the 2006-2007 Port Elizabeth Test, Pakistan won by five wickets with Inzamam-ul-Haq being named as Player of the Match for his 92 in the first innings.
In ODIs, Pakistan has won two of the last three series in 2013-2014 and 2020-21, while South Africa triumphed in 2002-2003 (4-1), 2006-2007 (3-1), 2012-2013 (3-2), and 2018-2019 (3-2).
In 12 T20Is to date, Pakistan leads 6-5 in head-to-head encounters, with one match ending in no-result.
Tour schedule:
10 Dec – 1st T20I, Durban
13 Dec – 2nd T20I, Centurion
14 Dec – 3rd T20I, Johannesburg
17 Dec – 1st ODI, Paarl
19 Dec – 2nd ODI, Cape Town
22 Dec – 3rd ODI, Johannesburg
26-30 Dec – 1st Test, Centurion
3-7 Jan – 2nd Test, Cape Town
Pakistani brothers inspire new volunteers after rescuing over 200 in UAE floods
- Affan and Suleiman Tanvir pulled families to safety during the cloudburst and provided them with food
- Their team has been rescuing tourists, adventure-seekers stranded in the desert over the past four years
ISLAMABAD: Since their move to the United Arab Emirates in 2008, Pakistani brothers Affan and Suleiman Tanvir have passionately devoted themselves to rescuing stranded travelers in different parts of the desert. But last month, their mission took an unexpected turn when the region experienced its heaviest rainfall in 75 years.
The brothers were suddenly thrust into a critical role, rescuing hundreds from waterlogged roads and submerged vehicles, as unprecedented floods transformed the streets into rivers. Alongside their team, they not only provided food and water but also pulled numerous cars to safety, navigating the chaotic aftermath of the storm in Dubai.
“We are proud of our work and glad to be recognized by the people for our rescue mission,” Affan told Arab News on Friday from Dubai over the phone. “We are honored and delighted to help people stranded on the roads during the torrential rains.”
Affan and his team rescued over 200 people and pulled out some 80 vehicles, including cars and minivans, during the rescue operation in Dubai and Sharjah that started in the morning on April 16 and continued for about two days.
Besides his brother Suleiman, the three other members of his rescue team included Alay Zaidi, Shahid Ibrahim Gul and Muhammad Owais.
Currently settled in Al-Hoshi in Sharjah, Affan brothers were born in Saudi Arabia while their parents belong to Karachi, Pakistan. In the UAE, they have set up a company for import and export of steel and transport.
The two brothers and their team were mentioned by several media houses for their heroic work, and the Pakistani consulate in Dubai acknowledged them by awarding certificates of appreciation.
“This rescue mission was not a new thing for us as we have been helping people stranded in the deserts for the last four years,” Affan said while narrating their extensive experience of saving people stuck in the desert terrain.
Affan said that they would receive frequent calls from adventure-seekers stuck in Ras Al-Khaimah desert for the rescue and relief as this was some 50-minute drive from their residence.
“We have a purpose-built vehicle along with all the accessories to pull out stuck cars, change their tires or toe them to main roads,” he said, adding that they had linked themselves to a local app, Rescue UAE, for people in need to get in touch with them.
“We use walkie-talkie to speak with the stranded people as there are no mobile phone signals in the desert,” he said, adding that they sometimes receive two or three rescue requests in a day from people stuck in the desert, especially during the winter season.
Talking about his team, he said that he started the rescue and relief work in 2020 along with his brother, but gradually his team started to grow with more people joining them.
“We are a 15-member team now and more people are joining us after getting inspired by our recent rescue work during the rains,” he added.
His team member Alay Zaidi told that two of their team members got shards in their feet during the rescue work, but they continued their mission to alleviate the sufferings of the families stuck on the roads along with children and women.
“It is a passion for us to help people in need, and we will continue doing our work with the same zeal and zest,” he continued. “We have received appreciation from the UAE people and officials for our work, and this is nothing less than a medal for us.”
Young Pakistani innovator dreams big with ‘self-driving’ car innovation
- Ehsan Zafar Abbasi belongs to a remote village in Abbottabad where he is known for his passion for science
- The 20-year-old drives his family car using computer keyboard, wants to set up automobile company like Tesla
ABBOTTABAD: Under the harsh glow of a fluorescent light, 20-year-old Ehsan Zafar Abbasi is busy examining the components of an obsolete printer he has just dismantled. A pre-engineering student from the remote village of Bagh in Pakistan’s Abbottabad district, he is known for his passion for taking electronics apart, often leading to innovative but sometimes unsuccessful repairs.
Abbasi recently captured the attention of his neighborhood by configuring his family car to mimic a self-driven vehicle. With the driver’s seat empty and the headrest removed, onlookers were captivated by the sight of an automobile that seemed to be driving itself.
Speaking to Arab News earlier this week, the young student said he first thought of driving a car through a keyboard while playing video games as a child.
“At that time, power supply was hardly ever available,” he recalled. “So, whenever we got electricity, it was another kind of happiness. We would immediately sit in front of the computer and play those games on CDs such as GTA: Vice City or Need for Speed.”
“So, I was inspired after playing those games, realizing if a car could be driven through a keyboard in a game, it could also be driven like that in real life,” he continued.
With limited Internet accessibility in his village, Abbasi understood the workings of electronics and mechanical items by conducting his own experiments in a tiny room under the stairs in his house.
“I have built a lab where I perform my experiments,” he said. “My brothers and uncles support my ambitions. They bring me scrap electronics from the second-hand market. I have dismantled many mobile phones, tablets, printers, scanners, computers, projectors, juicer machines and other things.”
After spending over seven months perfecting his new project, Abbasi said he wanted to further refine the car by adding more features to it.
“I want to add sensors and modern technology to the car so that people with disabilities can also fulfill their wish [to drive] and become independent,” he added.
However, the keyboard-driven vehicle is not his only invention.
“A year ago, I made another device for cars in which cellphone technology was integrated,” he said. “It had a SIM. If someone decided to steal your car, you could simply make a call on the [installed] device and your car stopped working.”
The vehicle’s brakes, he explained, could be activated by using one’s cellphone. Not only that, but the installed device also relayed any conversation among the carjackers in real-time.
Asked about his future ambitions, Abbasi said he wanted to build a multinational automotive company like Tesla in Pakistan. He also shared his desire to go to a top-notch university abroad like the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in the United States.
“Obviously, I cannot afford it, nor do I possess adequate English-language skills,” he continued. “I studied in ill-equipped public schools where we did not have electricity, Internet and other modern facilities. We used to walk for two hours to go to school and two hours on our way back.”
By the time he reached home, he felt tired and usually discovered that there was no electricity.
“I could not study the way I wanted to,” he said with a deep yearning in his eyes. “I request the Pakistani government, our prime minister and the president, to support me in getting quality higher education so I can add to the prestige of my country.”
England Women’s cricket coach using AI to pick team ahead of series with Pakistan
- Jon Lewis says technology worked in multi-format Women’s Ashes series against arch-rivals Australia
- Pakistan Women’s National Cricket Team will play Twenty20 and ODI series in England later this month
LONDON: England Women’s cricket coach Jon Lewis revealed Friday he is using artificial intelligence to aid team selection, saying the technology helped his side square last season’s Ashes.
Lewis first became familiar with the work of London-based PSi when he took charge of the UP Warriorz franchise in India’s Women’s Premier League.
Now the 48-year-old former England paceman uses the company to assist with his decisions about squad composition, team balance and in-game match-ups between players.
The system plots projected outcomes depending on the composition of each side.
“I can send multiple different line-ups to the PSi in London and they run, I think, about 250,000 simulations per team that I send, with all different permutations that could happen through the game,” he said.
We are able to run simulated teams versus the simulated opposition to give us an idea about how those teams may match up against each other.
“I came across it during my time at UP Warriorz and it’s something I looked at and thought it could add some value to the England Women’s cricket team.”
Lewis said he still favored a “people-first approach” but he added: “What data can do is give you a really objective view of what could happen and what has happened previously. I think it will help with borderline decisions in terms of selection and match-ups.”
Lewis, who has spoken to England’s rugby union coach Steve Borthwick about his own use of the PSi model, said the system had proved its worth as his side drew last season’s multi-format Women’s Ashes series against arch-rivals Australia.
“There was one selection particularly last year, one period of the Ashes that we targeted as a team,” said Lewis, speaking at the announcement of England’s squad for T20 and ODI series at home to Pakistan later this month.
“There were a couple of selections where AI really helped because both players I was thinking about picking were both in really good form and were both really selectable and it did help with those selections.
“We saw a real strength in Australia and we matched up our strength to that. That worked really, really well and it helped us win the T20 series in particular, which got us back in the Ashes.”
AI is becoming an increasing feature of top-level sport, with International Olympic Committee president Thomas Bach saying last month it could help identify talented athletes “in every corner of the world.”
He said AI could also provide more athletes with access to personalized training methods.
Pakistan launches special cybercrime unit under controversial PECA law, shifts role from FIA
- The agency will be led by director general with 15-year experience in digital forensics or public administration
- Pakistan’s information minister recently spoke against online harassment, emphasized upholding of digital rights
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has established a new investigation unit under the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA) 2016, tasked solely with focusing on cybercrimes in the country, a role previously performed by a dedicated wing of the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA).
The PECA law was originally enacted to combat various forms of cybercrime, including cyber terrorism, unauthorized access, electronic fraud and online harassment, aiming to enhance the security of cyberspace for users and businesses.
However, the law stirred controversy, particularly because its provisions were seen by critics as tools that could potentially curb freedom of speech and suppress dissent.
These concerns were also validated by instances of journalists being booked under the law, with courts raising objections regarding its application.
“There shall hereby stand established the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) to exercise jurisdiction under the Act and the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) shall cease to perform functions as designated investigation agency under the Act,” said a notification taken out by the Ministry of Information Technology and Telecommunication on April 24 that referred to the PECA law.
“All personnel, cases, inquiries, investigations, assets, liabilities, rights, obligations, privileges and matters related thereto or connected therewith subsisting immediately before commencement of these rules in respect of the defunct cybercrime wing of the FIA shall stand transferred to the NCCIA,” it added.
The new investigation agency will be led by a director general who will be appointed by the government for two years.
The individual performing the role will have at least 15 years of experience “in the field of computer sciences, digital forensics, cyber technology, law, public administration, information technology, telecommunication or related fields enabling him to deal with offenses under the Act.”
The notification said the FIA’s “defunct” cybercrime wing would continue to operate until suitable appointments are made to run the new agency.
Pakistan’s information minister Attaullah Tarar announced only a day ago that the government was setting up a new authority to end online harassment and uphold the digital rights of the people.
