President Joe Biden signed an executive order on Monday banning the U.S. government from using commercial spyware that poses counterintelligence and national security risks.
Spyware vendors with a history of illegal surveillance on a U.S. citizen or government department are now banned from operating in the U.S. Furthermore, the U.S. will also blacklist vendors if there is credible evidence that other countries relied on their tools to suppress civil liberties.
The Biden administration announced the move just days before the Summit for Democracy, which kicked off today. Participants are likely to discuss spyware during the summit. The White House hosted the first edition of the summit back in 2021, where President Biden announced an initiative to promote anti-censorship and privacy-enhancing technology.
Spyware Ban Applies to U.S. Federal Departments and Agencies
The executive order will also effectively prevent U.S. federal government departments and agencies from using spyware “that has been or risks being misused.” The affected bodies include those engaged in law enforcement, defense, and intelligence.
The move will deter U.S. agencies from relying on tools such as NSO Group’s Pegasus, which has come under immense scrutiny in recent years. The order is not limited to tools from foreign entities. It also blacklists spyware tools from U.S.-based vendors that pose a security risk.
“The proliferation of commercial spyware poses distinct and growing counterintelligence and security risks to the United States, including to the safety and security of U.S. Government personnel and their families,” a White House press release said.
Malicious actors have used mobile spyware to target U.S. federal officials. In 2021, hackers targeted Department of State officials with Pegasus.
According to Ron Deibert, director of the University of Toronto’s Citizen Lab, the White House has now made a lucrative market inaccessible to vendors of surveillance tools with dangerous track records. Deibert told CNN the White House’s move signals that “the Wild West days are over” for such firms.
Protecting U.S. Foreign Policy Interests
Apart from protecting the United States’ national security, the order also signals the country’s stance against human rights violations in other jurisdictions.
“A growing number of foreign governments around the world, moreover, have deployed this technology to facilitate repression and enable human rights abuses, including to intimidate political opponents and curb dissent, limit freedom of expression, and monitor and target activists and journalists,” the press release reads.
Authoritarian governments, such as Bahrain, are known to use spyware to target dissidents. However, spyware has also been widely used in democratic nations like Spain recently. High-ranking EU officials have also been targeted with spyware.
Interested in learning how to detect spyware and remove it from your device? Check out our guide to spyware.
