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Botswana police use Israeli Cellebrite Tech to search another journalist’s phone

Botswana police use Israeli Cellebrite Tech to search another journalist’s phone

JONATHAN ROZEN TSAONE Basimanebotlhe was not expecting security agents to appear at her home in a village outside Gaborone, Botswana’s capital, in July 2019, she told CPJ in a recent interview. But they didn’t come to arrest or charge her, she recalled – they came for her devices, hunting for the source for an article published by her employer, Mmegi newspaper. Basimanebotlhe, a politics reporter, said she surrendered her phone and password to the agents after they presented a warrant and could not find her computer. A senior officer then used technology sold by the Israel-based company Cellebrite to extract and analyze thousands of…
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France’s Macron changes phone in light of Pegasus case, Israel eyes spyware export curbs

France’s Macron changes phone in light of Pegasus case, Israel eyes spyware export curbs

MICHEL ROSE and DAN WILLIAMS FRENCH President Emmanuel Macron has changed his mobile phone and phone number in light of the Pegasus spyware case, a presidency official said on Thursday, in one of the first concrete actions announced in relation to the scandal. "He's got several phone numbers. This does not mean he has been spied on. It's just additional security," the official told Reuters. Government spokesman Gabriel Attal said the president's security protocols were being adapted in light of the incident. A global outcry was triggered when several international media organisations reported that the Pegasus spyware was used in…
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Spyware threatens press freedom’s privacy imperative

Spyware threatens press freedom’s privacy imperative

JONATHAN ROZEN SPYWARE’S repeated use to target journalists and those close to them poses an existential threat to the privacy required for press freedom to flourish. Without the ability to privately communicate with sources, conduct research, and compile information, journalists are hampered in their ability to keep the public informed and hold the powerful to account. “The spyware attack revealed to me that regardless of where I am and what citizenship I hold, if the Moroccan government wants to gather surveillance, they will…It prevents you from being able to do your work because you don’t want to put people [you…
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