A report published today, Thursday, by a non-governmental organization revealed that hackers used the Israeli spyware "Pegasus" to hack the phones of dozens of journalists and activists in Jordan over the past four years.

A report by "Access Now" highlighted 35 hacking cases dating back to 2019, with targets also including lawyers and at least one politician.

The report did not accuse the Jordanian government of using the spyware, but it said its use came at a time "when authorities intensified their crackdown on citizens’ rights to freedom of expression, association, and peaceful assembly."

The program, developed by the Israeli company "NSO Group" and sold to governments worldwide, enables its users to access the targeted person's phone data including text messages, emails, and photos, as well as track their location, eavesdrop on calls, and activate the phone’s camera without their knowledge.

The "Citizen Lab" institute revealed in 2021 the use of "Pegasus" spyware to spy on the phones of hundreds of politicians, journalists, human rights activists, and business leaders worldwide.

Despite the scandal, the Israeli group and similar companies continue to sell their products, and the United States has placed several companies, including "NSO," on its blacklist.

Marwa Fatfat, Director of Policy for the Middle East and North Africa at "Access Now," affirmed that "there is usually no oversight on the companies that provide these spying programs, allowing the surveillance sector to continue its secret and dubious business practices."

She told Agence France-Presse: "Governments are feverishly buying technologies to spy on their citizens and suppress civil society." The NGO repeated its call for a total ban on any spyware that enables rights violations.

According to Fatfat, "there is no proportionate use of spyware."

"Access Now" said most of the cases it uncovered in Jordan date between 2020 and late 2023.

Palestinian-American journalist residing in Jordan, Daoud Kuttab, had his phone hacked three times in 2022 and 2023, and also faced seven other failed attempts.

Kuttab confirmed that "most journalists working in the Middle East expect their phones to be tapped."

He told Agence France-Presse: "Previously, people just listened to what you said, but Pegasus is much more intrusive."

He explained that "what worries him most is the possibility of those behind the attacks accessing his sources," clarifying: "I don’t want to burn my sources, nor do I want to harm them."

"Access Now" pointed out that many of those targeted "were in some way connected to the teachers’ strike" that lasted a month in 2019, which led authorities to arrest hundreds of teachers and dissolve their union.

The organization confirmed it was unable to prove who was behind the Pegasus targeting.

A separate 2022 report by two other NGOs, "Citizen Lab" and "Front Line Defenders," identified "two operators of the Pegasus program" that they claimed "are most likely agencies affiliated with the Jordanian government."

NSO Group, which is facing multiple lawsuits from Apple and others, has repeatedly insisted that it sells its software only to government clients and for peaceful purposes.

However, a 2021 investigation indicated about 50,000 potential Pegasus victims worldwide, many of whom are dissidents, journalists, and activists, according to Agence France-Presse.