ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has strongly rejected claims made in a recent Amnesty International report alleging the use of Israeli-manufactured spyware within the country for targeted surveillance.
In this regard, a senior intelligence official dismissed the report as “an attempt to malign Pakistan,” adding, “There is not an iota of truth in it.” The official focused on the fact that the allegations were politically motivated and lacked credible evidence.
Furthermore, the controversy stems from Amnesty International’s investigation titled Intellexa Leaks, which suggested that multiple individuals in Pakistan were potentially targeted using Predator, a sophisticated spyware system developed by the Israeli company Intellexa.
In this sense, as per the report, a human rights lawyer in Balochistan approached Amnesty in 2025 after receiving a suspicious WhatsApp link, which researchers later identified as an attempted Predator infection.
So far, Amnesty’s findings were reportedly based on internal company documents, marketing materials, training videos, and other leaked data collected over several months.
The investigation was conducted in collaboration with media partners in Greece, Israel, and Switzerland.
The report also noted that Google had issued threat notifications to hundreds of users in various countries, including Pakistan, warning them about potential spyware threats. So far, Pakistani officials have categorically denied any operational use of such spyware within the country, calling the allegations “misleading.”
However, human rights advocates have expressed concern about the potential misuse of sophisticated spyware globally, citing the risks it poses to privacy, civil rights, and national security.
They warned that invasive digital tools can be exploited by state and non-state actors alike, emphasizing the need for stronger safeguards and transparency.
The officials from Pakistan maintain that the claims do not indicate reality on the ground. The government reasserted its commitment to upholding national security and protecting the privacy of its citizens, asserting that any unauthorized digital surveillance would be thoroughly investigated under the law.
The debate underlines growing global concerns over the ethical use of advanced spyware technologies and the balance between security and individual rights, as countries and human rights organizations navigate a rapidly evolving digital landscape.
