An official with Meta Platforms' popular WhatsApp chat service said Israeli spyware company Paragon Solutions had targeted scores of its users, including journalists and members of civil society.

WhatsApp has revealed it has disrupted a spyware hacking campaign targeting journalists and prominent members of civil society. The spyware in question belongs to Paragon, a commercial spyware company founded by former Israeli intelligence officers, which Meta-owned WhatsApp has directly implicated in the campaign.

WhatsApp has accused Israeli spyware firm Paragon Solutions of targeting 90 users in more than two dozen countries. This spyware has particularly targeted attacks on journalists and other civil society members exploiting vulnerabilities on users’ devices.

Meta-owned WhatsApp disrupted a zero-click spyware campaign by Paragon Solutions, targeting 90 journalists and activists.

According to the chat service, an Israeli company called Paragon Solutions used group chats and PDFs to target the individuals.

By Raphael Satter WASHINGTON (Reuters) -An official with Meta's popular WhatsApp chat service said the Israeli spyware company Paragon Solutions had targeted scores of its users, including journalists and members of civil society.