Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1463840
15 maltatoday | WEDNESDAY • 6 APRIL 2022 NEWS EUROPE These articles are part of a content series called Ewropej. This is a multi-newsroom initiative part-funded by the European Parliament to bring the work of the EP closer to the citizens of Malta and keep them informed about matters that affect their daily lives. These articles reflect only the authors' view. The European Parliament is not responsible for any use that may be made of the information it contains. THE launch of a committee to investigate the use of Pegasus spyware within the EU has been agreed to and is expected to be approved for action by the Euro- pean Parliament next week. The Parliament's Conference of Presidents – a group made up of the legislature's Presi- dent, Roberta Metsola, and the heads of each of its political groups – agreed to the estab- lishment of an inquiry com- mittee on the subject ahead of a vote at the plenary session in Strasbourg next week, where lawmakers will confirm the launch and mandate of the in- vestigation. The committee is set to look into the purchase and deploy- ment of the controversial tech- nology and allegations that it was used by EU governments – namely Poland and Hungary – to hack the phones of crit- ics, journalists and politicians. Made up of 38 members, it will spend 12 months scrutinising the tech's presence in Europe. A key aim of the inquiry is to increase citizens' confidence in government, more impor- tant than ever in the context of the war in Ukraine, said Polish MEP Róża Thun on 3 March. "Instead of using the modern technology against the oppo- sition, journalists and lawyers, the governments of the EU member states should build trust and involve all the ac- tors", she said. An investigation by a con- sortium of media outlets last year revealed how the spyware, produced by Israeli firm NSO Group, had been used to target high-profile figures including French President Emmanuel Macron and European Council President Charles Michel. The consortium's investiga- tion into the spyware found that the technology had been widely abused by governments around the world, used to take control of and provide a win- dow into the devices of targets from politicians and diplomats to lawyers and activists. The establishment of such an inquiry committee is a rare occurrence. The Parliament's Renew group first proposed an investigation in September 2021, but it failed to gain the necessary support. After the emergence of further infor- mation about the extent of the spyware's use in Europe, how- ever, the initiative gained fur- ther backing and its launch was confirmed in February. The European Commission last July announced the launch of its own investigation into the tool's use and whether it had violated EU laws at a time when Hungary was already in conflict with Brussels over its adherence to bloc-wide rule of law provisions. Last month, the European Data Protection Supervisor called for a ban on surveillance spyware like Pegasus, saying it could lead to an "unprecedent- ed level of intrusiveness" in people's everyday lives. The Polish government ac- knowledged in January that it bought the software, despite previous denials to this effect. It disputed claims, however, that it had been used to in- filtrate the phones of critics, three of whom, including an opposition senator, were found by the University of Toronto's Citizen Lab to have been on the receiving end of the technolo- gy. A commission launched by the country's Senate but boy- cotted by the ruling Law and Justice (PiS) party, found that the spyware had been bought by Poland's Anti-Corruption Bureau in 2017; senators now plan to draft legislation to reg- ulate the use of surveillance technology. Hungary, the only EU country listed as a client of NSO Group, has acknowledged the purchase of the tech, but similarly denies that it was used maliciously. An investigation by the country's National Authority for Data Protection and Freedom of In- formation concluded that all instances of its use were legally justifiable and in the interests of national security. According to the original in- vestigation, journalists and the owners of media organi- sations were among those tar- geted with the spyware by the government of Viktor Orbán. The Hungarian Civil Liberties Union last month announced a suit against the government and NSO Group on behalf of the journalists whose devices were compromised. While Poland and Hungary have been the most promi- nent cases of the tech's use in the EU, Dutch MEP Sophie in 't Veld noted on Thursday that it had also possibly been de- ployed in other countries, such as Bulgaria. As such, she said, the scope of the investigation's draft man- date is subject to revision and expansion if new information comes to light as the commit- tee moves forward. She also noted that multiple lines of inquiry would be covered, in- cluding violations of data pro- tection, the right to privacy, European electoral law and the EU's fundamental treaties. "We will do everything we can, even with the limited means we have", she said. "Even with those limited means, we can dig up a lot of information." EU Parliament to launch investigative committee on Pegasus spyware An investigation by a consortium of media outlets last year revealed how the spyware, produced by Israeli firm NSO Group, had been used to target high-profile figures