Hustler Words – A chilling revelation has emerged from the heart of Europe: a politician actively engaged in scrutinizing the misuse of surveillance technology has himself fallen victim to the notorious Pegasus spyware. This alarming development, confirmed by leading digital rights researchers, has ignited a fresh wave of controversy regarding governments’ alleged weaponization of sophisticated surveillance tools against their critics and even their own investigators.
The Citizen Lab, a distinguished digital rights unit based at the University of Toronto, has publicly identified Greek journalist and former politician Stelios Kouloglou as the target. Their findings confirm that Kouloglou’s phone was compromised by Pegasus during 2022 and 2023. This marks a significant precedent, as it is the first time a member of the European Parliament’s PEGA committee – specifically tasked with investigating governmental phone spyware attacks across Europe – has been publicly named as a victim of such an intrusion.
In an exclusive conversation with Hustler Words, Kouloglou vehemently condemned the deliberate breach of his device as "reckless." The gravity of the situation was underscored by an unnamed serving European lawmaker, who characterized the hacking of Kouloglou’s phone as a "direct attack on the rule of law." This lawmaker further urged the European Commission to implement decisive measures, including stringent limitations on spyware deployment across the 27-member bloc.
While direct cyberattacks on legislators are uncommon, the precise timing and specific targeting of a committee investigator by the very spyware under his purview suggest an intense focus on the committee’s internal operations, particularly in anticipation of its forthcoming detailed report. These breaches raise critical questions about the ethical boundaries of spyware use, ostensibly for combating serious crime, when it is simultaneously deployed to monitor the private communications of journalists, lawmakers, and dissenting voices.
Citizen Lab’s researchers, while not directly attributing the attack to a specific nation-state, noted a crucial detail: the government client responsible for this incident utilized the identical Pegasus-loaded email address previously observed in a campaign that targeted journalists across Europe. The identity of this client remains undisclosed, yet the reuse of the attacking email address strongly implies NSO Group’s authorization for this customer to deploy its Pegasus spyware for surveillance operations spanning multiple European countries.
Neither a spokesperson for the European Commission nor NSO Group responded to Hustler Words’ inquiries for comment regarding the Citizen Lab report prior to its publication.
Citizen Lab’s report, released on Friday, details that Kouloglou’s device was first compromised in October 2022 and subsequently at least twice in March 2023. The attacks leveraged a "zero-click" exploit, which exploited a security vulnerability within Apple’s iPhone software. This particular flaw had been patched, but the fix had not yet been installed on Kouloglou’s device at the time of the attacks. A zero-click bug means the spyware infiltrated and exfiltrated data without requiring any user interaction.
The vulnerability exploited was a previously identified flaw in Apple’s smart home software integrated into iPhones. This allowed the spyware to surreptitiously extract sensitive personal data from Kouloglou’s phone, including text messages, other correspondence, location data, and photographs, all without his knowledge.
The timing of the October 2022 hack is particularly salient, coinciding with intensive email and text message exchanges throughout October and November 2022. This period immediately preceded the submission of an initial draft report detailing spyware abuses in Cyprus, Greece, Hungary, Poland, and Spain.
Furthermore, this initial compromise occurred precisely when Kouloglou was hospitalized for a pre-scheduled surgery. This opportunistic timing potentially allowed the spyware operators to capture ambient audio, potentially revealing discussions about his healthcare or other private conversations with visitors during a vulnerable period.
Months later, on March 6 and 7, Citizen Lab confirmed Kouloglou’s phone was again targeted by the same Pegasus operator. These subsequent attacks took place as Kouloglou traveled from Athens to Brussels, a period marked by ongoing committee hearings and several months before the PEGA committee finalized and adopted its written report.
During a conversation, Kouloglou informed Hustler Words that he remains unaware of the specific reason for his targeting but firmly believes it stems from his dedicated work on the European Parliament’s committee investigating Pegasus abuses.
He expressed profound anger upon discovering the extent of the intrusion. "You realize that all of your personal data [was taken] — not all the professional exchanges or messages with ministers — but also the very private things, like the happy moments and the sad moments," he shared with Hustler Words.
Kouloglou has announced his intention to pursue legal action against NSO Group, the Israeli-headquartered spyware manufacturer. NSO Group currently faces significant restrictions in the United States, largely due to a Biden-era executive order that prohibited government use of spyware deemed to violate human rights.
Last year, NSO Group acknowledged that an unnamed American investment consortium injected tens of millions of dollars into the company. This capital infusion is widely perceived as an attempt to rehabilitate NSO’s tarnished brand, which has become synonymous with enabling human rights abuses globally.
Kouloglou stated his decision to go public with his story was "for democracy, human rights, and the fight against corruption." He concluded, emphasizing the universal impact of such issues: "Corruption concerns everybody."
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