Uzbekistan surveillance campaign leverages new spyware against human rights activists
Human rights activists and journalists in Uzbekistan, whom researchers have long claimed are victims of intrusive surveillance, are facing an increasingly sophisticated campaign in Uzbekistan, according to new findings from Amnesty International. Last year, a Canadian non-profit, eQualitie, revealed that a group of unidentified attackers has targeted journalists and human rights defenders in Uzbekistan with spearphishing emails since 2016. In June, the attackers escalated their activity, and are now trying to leverage spyware against hundreds of targets, Amnesty said in research published Friday. The advanced espionage efforts highlight how the surveillance threat to vulnerable groups in Uzbekistan is “more sophisticated than previously documented, and able to bypass some security tools [human rights defenders] use to protect themselves[,]” according to the Amnesty International blog detailing the analysis. Human rights activists have been fighting against forced labor and torture in Uzbekistan’s criminal justice system, according to Human Rights Watch. Watchdog groups also have cited unfair criminal trials, and politically-motivated imprisonment in the country. Authorities typically claim they […]
The post Uzbekistan surveillance campaign leverages new spyware against human rights activists appeared first on CyberScoop.