The Israeli company Paragon Solutions has launched a cyberattack on journalists and civil society representatives using Graphite spyware, which does not require clicking on links to infect devices. This was reported by The Guardian with reference to a statement by WhatsApp, owned by Meta.
In total, the hacking attacks affected 90 people in different countries, including Francesco Cancellato, editor-in-chief of the Italian investigative publication Fanpage. It was his team that exposed members of the youth wing of the far-right Frații Italiei (FdI) party, headed by Italian Prime Minister Georgia Meloni, for using Nazi salutes and chanting the name of dictator Benito Mussolini.
How the spyware works
Graphite malware is spread via PDFs in group chats, where victims are added without their consent. WhatsApp discovered the attack in December 2024 and blocked the vulnerability. At the same time, the platform did not disclose who was behind the attacks or which governments might have ordered them.
Francesco Cancellato only received a warning from WhatsApp on Friday, 2 February. He has already started a technical analysis of his device to determine the extent of the attack.
Political scandal and the EU’s response
Fanpage’s exposé on neo-fascist tendencies in the ranks of Frații Italiei caused a loud scandal in Italy and Europe. The European Commission condemned the manifestations of fascism, stressing that such ideas are unacceptable and immoral.
Paragon Solutions has so far remained silent and has not commented on the allegations. At the same time, Meta has already informed international law enforcement agencies about the incident, which could have serious legal consequences.
