NSO Group indicates rare agreement with Apple over dismissal of lawsuit | CyberScoop<\/title> <meta name=\"description\" content=\"The leading maker of spyware offered somewhat different explanations about wanting to see Apple\u2019s lawsuit disappear.\"> <link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/nso-group-court-filing-apple-lawsuit\/\"> <meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\"> <meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\"> <meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"NSO Group indicates rare agreement with Apple over dismissal of lawsuit\"> <meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The leading maker of spyware offered somewhat different explanations about wanting to see Apple\u2019s lawsuit disappear.\"> <meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/nso-group-court-filing-apple-lawsuit\/\"> <meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"CyberScoop\"> <meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2024-09-30T20:42:21+00:00\"> <meta 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class=\"stickybar__details\" readability=\"4.952380952381\">\n<div class=\"stickybar__info js-sticky-bar-content\" readability=\"32\">\n<p>Voting is open for the 2024 CyberScoop 50 awards! <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p> <a class=\"stickybar__link button button-tertiary\" href=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/cyberscoop50\/vote\/\">Click here!<\/a> <\/div>\n<p> <button class=\"stickybar__close js-stickybar-close\" aria-controls=\"stickybar\"> <svg class=\"icon icon--close\" width=\"21\" height=\"22\" viewBox=\"0 0 21 22\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"m.822.518-.805.805L9.695 11 .017 20.678l.805.805 9.678-9.678 9.677 9.678.806-.805L11.305 11l9.678-9.677-.806-.805-9.677 9.677L.822.518Z\" fill=\"currentColor\" \/><\/svg> <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Close<\/span> <\/button> <\/section>\n<article class=\"single-article content\">\n<div class=\"single-article__container js-single-article-content\">\n<header class=\"single-article__header \" readability=\"25.129310344828\">\n<div class=\"single-article__header-content\" readability=\"30.051063829787\">\n<ul class=\"single-article__eyebrow\">\n<li class=\"single-article__category\"> <a class=\"single-article__category-link\" href=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/news\/geopolitics\/\"> <span>Geopolitics<\/span> <\/a> <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p> The leading maker of spyware offered somewhat different explanations about wanting to see Apple\u2019s lawsuit disappear. <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"single-article__cover-wrap\">\n<figure class=\"single-article__cover\"> <img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" fetchpriority=\"high\" width=\"640\" height=\"426\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/nso-group-indicates-rare-agreement-with-apple-over-dismissal-of-lawsuit.jpg?resize=640%2C426&ssl=1\" class=\"single-article__cover-image wp-post-image\" alt decoding=\"async\" fetchpriority=\"high\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/nso-group-indicates-rare-agreement-with-apple-over-dismissal-of-lawsuit-2.jpg 1920w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/nso-group-indicates-rare-agreement-with-apple-over-dismissal-of-lawsuit-2.jpg?resize=300,200 300w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/nso-group-indicates-rare-agreement-with-apple-over-dismissal-of-lawsuit-2.jpg?resize=768,512 768w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/nso-group-indicates-rare-agreement-with-apple-over-dismissal-of-lawsuit-2.jpg?resize=1024,683 1024w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/nso-group-indicates-rare-agreement-with-apple-over-dismissal-of-lawsuit-2.jpg?resize=1536,1024 1536w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/nso-group-indicates-rare-agreement-with-apple-over-dismissal-of-lawsuit-2.jpg?resize=600,400 600w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/nso-group-indicates-rare-agreement-with-apple-over-dismissal-of-lawsuit-2.jpg?resize=252,168 252w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/nso-group-indicates-rare-agreement-with-apple-over-dismissal-of-lawsuit-2.jpg?resize=506,337 506w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/nso-group-indicates-rare-agreement-with-apple-over-dismissal-of-lawsuit-2.jpg?resize=1013,675 1013w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/nso-group-indicates-rare-agreement-with-apple-over-dismissal-of-lawsuit-2.jpg?resize=1265,843 1265w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1013px) 100vw, 1013px\"><figcaption> A photographic illustration shows a mobile phone near the NSO Group company logo on Feb. 9, 2022 in the Israeli city of Netanya. (Photo by JACK GUEZ\/AFP via Getty Images) <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/header>\n<div class=\"single-article__content\">\n<div class=\"single-article__content-inner has-drop-cap\"> <html readability=\"31.082419211385\"><body readability=\"63.155921052632\"><\/p>\n<p>Leading spyware company NSO Group <a href=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2024\/09\/2024-09-27-100-Statement-in-Response-to-Plaintiffs-Motion-for-Voluntary-Dismissal.pdf\">said in a court filing<\/a> that it agreed with Apple on its recent motion to drop its lawsuit against the Israel-based firm over the alleged targeting of its users, and asked a judge to consider reimbursing it for its legal expenses.<\/p>\n<p>The NSO Group filing, dated Friday, offers largely different reasons for why the suit should be dismissed than Apple did. Apple maintained in its Sept. 9 filing that court disclosures could hamper its efforts to fight spyware, and that NSO Group had extensively avoided sharing its own information \u2014 plus, the lawsuit is potentially made less useful because the spyware market has expanded since it <a href=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/apple-sues-nso-group-spyware-vendor-known-for-helping-governments-hack-critics\/\">filed suit<\/a> three years ago.<\/p>\n<p>NSO Group, by contrast, said that while it agreed with Apple that there were \u201csignificant obstacles\u201d in the court case, the real issue was that a district court in California wasn\u2019t the right venue for \u201cadjudicating claims that a foreign technology company licensed lawful-intercept technology to foreign governments, which then used the technology to monitor foreign criminals and terrorists in foreign countries for those countries\u2019 own national security and other sovereign interests.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The filing states that Apple has done little to prosecute its claims, and as such the judge should dismiss the lawsuit \u201cwith prejudice,\u201d meaning that it couldn\u2019t be refiled later. But if the judge dismisses it without prejudice, then NSO Group said it would like to be reimbursed for its court costs as the work it has done on the case couldn\u2019t be recycled.<\/p>\n<div class=\"ad ad--inline_1 \">\n<div class=\"ad__inner\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Advertisement<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>\u201cLittle, if any, of this work can be repurposed for future litigation, particularly if the future claims involve different allegations and different time periods,\u201d NSO Group said in the filing.<\/p>\n<p>Apple did not immediately respond to a request for comment.<\/p>\n<p>Apple isn\u2019t the only tech giant to take NSO Group to court over spyware abuses. Meta-owned WhatsApp <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/technology\/2024\/feb\/29\/pegasus-surveillance-code-whatsapp-meta-lawsuit-nso-group\">has an active case<\/a> dating back to 2019. <\/p>\n<p>Others have also taken legal action in the United States against the spyware giant, such as <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/dc-md-va\/2023\/10\/26\/jamal-khashoggi-nso-pegasus-spyware-widow-lawsuit-dismissed\/\">the widow of journalist Jamal Khashoggi<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.rcfp.org\/briefs-comments\/dada-v-nso-group\/\">El Salvadoran journalists<\/a>, although both those cases were dismissed by the judges who first heard them.<\/p>\n<p>At a recent Senate hearing, a witness testified that Congress should consider amending a 1976 law that has proven to be a barrier for victims who seek justice against spyware makers in U.S. courts, since \u201cthe global nature of the issue and jurisdictional hurdles make it hard for victims to hold companies accountable,\u201d said David Kaye, a law professor at University of California-Irvine and former United Nations special rapporteur on freedom of opinion and expression. <\/p>\n<div class=\"ad ad--inline_1 \">\n<div class=\"ad__inner\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Advertisement<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>\u201cFederal courts \u2026 have adopted a narrow reading of the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act,\u201d he said in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.foreign.senate.gov\/imo\/media\/doc\/027dd814-b0a8-15b2-2e1f-ec779d72bb40\/092424_Kaye_Testimony.pdf\">written testimony<\/a> before the Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on East Asia, the Pacific, and International Cybersecurity Policy. \u201cCongress could explore ways to make remedies available to such victims in U.S. courts.\u201d<\/p>\n<p> <\/body> <\/p>\n<footer class=\"single-article__footer\">\n<div class=\"author-card\" readability=\"7.7216117216117\">\n<div class=\"author-card__avatar\">\n<figure class=\"author-card__image-wrap\"> <img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"author-card__image\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/nso-group-indicates-rare-agreement-with-apple-over-dismissal-of-lawsuit-1.jpg?w=640&ssl=1\" alt=\"Tim Starks\"> <\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"author-card__details\" readability=\"10.901098901099\">\n<h4 class=\"author-card__name\">Written by Tim Starks<\/h4>\n<p> Tim Starks is senior reporter at CyberScoop. His previous stops include working at The Washington Post, POLITICO and Congressional Quarterly. An Evansville, Ind. native, he’s covered cybersecurity since 2003. Email Tim here: <a href=\"mailto:tim.starks@cyberscoop.com\">tim.starks@cyberscoop.com<\/a>. <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"single-article__tags-container\">\n<h4 class=\"single-article__tags-title\">In This Story<\/h4>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/footer>\n<p> <\/html><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"single-article__ads js-single-article-sidebar\">\n<div class=\"ad ad--sidebar js-single-article-sidebar-5 ad--rightrail_1 \">\n<div class=\"ad__inner\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Advertisement<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"ad ad--sidebar js-single-article-sidebar-4 ad--rightrail_2 \">\n<div class=\"ad__inner\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Advertisement<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"ad ad--sidebar js-single-article-sidebar-3 ad--rightrail_3 \">\n<div class=\"ad__inner\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Advertisement<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/article>\n<div class=\"popular-stories popular-stories--single-post\">\n<div 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{"id":5547,"date":"2024-09-30T15:42:21","date_gmt":"2024-09-30T20:42:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/?p=81978"},"modified":"2024-09-30T15:42:21","modified_gmt":"2024-09-30T20:42:21","slug":"nso-group-indicates-rare-agreement-with-apple-over-dismissal-of-lawsuit","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/index.php\/2024\/09\/30\/nso-group-indicates-rare-agreement-with-apple-over-dismissal-of-lawsuit\/","title":{"rendered":"NSO Group indicates rare agreement with Apple over dismissal of lawsuit"},"content":{"rendered":"