FBI confirms it obtained NSO’s Pegasus spyware

Bureau says sophisticated hacking tool was never used in support of any investigation

The FBI has confirmed that it obtained NSO Group's powerful Pegasus spyware, suggesting that it bought access to the Israeli surveillance tool to stay abreast of emerging technologies and tradecraft".

In a statement released to the Guardian, the bureau said it had procured a limited licence" to access Pegasus for product testing and evaluation only", and suggested that its evaluation of the tool partly related to security concerns if the spyware fell into the wrong hands".