WhatsApp says Italian surveillance company tricked around 200 users into downloading spyware

By Raphael Satter

WASHINGTON, ‌April 1 (Reuters) - ​Messaging ​service WhatsApp said an Italian surveillance company tricked some 200 users into downloading ‌a bogus version of its popular app ⁠that was rigged to spy on its victims.

In a ‌statement, the Meta Platforms-owned ‌service said the campaign was carried out by ASIGINT, a subsidiary of northern Italy-based SIO, ​whose website boasts of "high-performance, field-proven cyber intelligence solutions and technology."

WhatsApp said the campaign was "highly targeted" ⁠and relied on deception to get victims to install "malicious software that ​impersonated WhatsApp." It did not identify the victims beyond saying they were "primarily" in ​Italy.

SIO, which says on its ‌website that it partners with "Law Enforcement Agencies, Government Organizations, Police and Intelligence ⁠Agencies," did not immediately return a message seeking comment. Italy's interior ministry referred questions to police, who ⁠did not immediately return a message.

This is the second time ​in 15 months that Meta has publicly disrupted spyware activity in Italy, which is still dealing with the ‌fallout from the exposure in early 2025 of a surveillance operation carried ‌out using spyware from the U.S.-owned firm Paragon. ⁠Italy and Paragon have ‌since parted ways.

(Reporting ​by Raphael Satter, Additional reporting by Alvise Armellini in Rome, Editing by Chris ‌Reese)

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