Spanish Government refuses to speculate on Pegasus client identity, following espionage claims

A data leak from within the Israeli Pegasus Spyware project has revealed that over 200 Spanish officials’ phones had been compromised in a spying attempt, as the Sanchez government refuses to speculate on the potential client, alleged to be Morocco.

The Spanish government called a press conference this Monday revealing the external attack, but has refused to speculate on who may have been behind the bugging. Media outlets, however, did not stall in attributing the attack to Morocco.

Spanish President Pedro Sanchez and Defense Minister Margarita Robles were among the listed targets of the attack, which had reportedly taken place last year, in the midst of the diplomatic spat between Spain and Morocco.

The anonymous client selected the officials as surveillance targets for an Israeli company, NSO Group, prompting the Spanish Government to file a complaint about the alleged spying through the State Attorney’s Office this Monday.

This Tuesday, reports have additionally revealed that the cell phone of the then Spanish Foreign Minister, Arancha Gonzalez Laya, was also spied on last May.

The origin of the cyber attack nor whether the system used was Pegasus has been accredited for the Gonzalez case.

The Spanish Government has so far refused to speculate on who may have been behind the espionage, although officials have assured it was an external attack and not an official state agency.

Spanish Minister of the Presidency Felix Bolaños replied to journalists’ questions about Morocco’s alleged involvement, saying: “I do not think I can talk about a country, an institution or uncontrolled elements, we do not have any information in this regard.”

According to The Guardian’s report, the anonymous client was “active in the search for possible targets for surveillance within Spain,” which establishes espionage intent, but so far, actual spying on the mobile phones listed has yet to be proven.

In addition, the choice of targeted phone numbers allegedly occurred in 2019, according to temporary data that includes more than 50,000 numbers of people selected as possible targets for surveillance by NSO clients around the world, which includes officials, journalists, civilians, and activists.