"There is no proposal for banning any group named 'NSO Group'": IT Minister, Rajeev Chandrasekhar

The government has cleared that there is no proposal to ban any group named ‘NSO Group’. Also, it does not have any information on whether the US has blacklisted the group for providing Pegasus spyware.

IT Minister, Rajeev Chandrasekhar was responding to a written question in Rajya Sabha on banning of NSO Group.

While answering on whether the US has blacklisted NSO Group and Candiru for providing Pegasus spyware that was allegedly used to maliciously target journalists, embassy workers and activists, he said, “No such information is available in this ministry”.

To a question on whether the ministry has also banned the NSO Group in India, Chandrasekhar said, “There is no proposal for banning any group named ‘NSO Group’”.

At the beginning of this year, a row came to surface that Israeli spyware Pegasus allegedly being used for targeted surveillance in India. Supreme Court of India, in October, formed a three-member independent expert panel to probe the alleged use of the spyware for targeted surveillance in India.

The apex court had also observed that the state cannot get a ”free pass” every time the spectre of national security is raised and that its mere invocation cannot render the judiciary a ”mute spectator” and be the bugbear it shies away from.

Responding to another question, the minister said the government is well aware of the risk and danger posed by growing phenomena of misuse of various media platform and the user harms caused as a consequence by criminals and anti-national elements.

“Government has taken appropriate steps to address the challenges of misuse of social media,” he said.