Computer network security

Even if we were to accept the argument that the illegal spyware affair is solely about certain private parties and individuals, the Greek justice system had a duty to investigate further.

Lawyers representing the plaintiffs in the high-profile wiretapping case have pointed out shortcomings in the judicial investigation, following the announcement on Tuesday by the Supreme Court prosecutor of the completion of the preliminary investigation.

Greek Supreme Court Prosecutor Georgia Adeilini announced on Tuesday the results of the investigation into the phone-tapping case. The investigation found no involvement of any state service in the use or purchase of the illegal Predator spyware, which was discovered on the phones of numerous prominent Greek politicians, journalists, and businesspeople.

One of the key figures in Greece's spiraling wiretapping case still owns a 35% stake of Intellexa, which sells Predator spyware in Greece, despite attempts to show that he had sold the stake, a report revealed on Wednesday.

A request by two prosecutors last year to check whether the 92 people targeted by illegal spyware Predator had also been surveilled by the country's intelligence service, EYP, remains pending four months after it was submitted to the independent authority responsible for privacy, ADAE.

The Treasury Department announced Tuesday it has sanctioned two people and a Greece-based commercial spyware company headed by a former Israeli military officer that developed, operated and distributed technology used to target U.S. government officials, journalists and policy experts.

The European Parliament on Wednesday called on the Commission to act over what it described as "grave concerns" about the rule of law in Greece, citing a hostile environment for journalists, the use of spyware against political opponents and journalists and abuse of power by the police.

MEPs adopted the resolution with 330 votes in favor, 254 against, and 26 abstentions.

The United States on Monday announced a new visa restriction policy for those it said were misusing commercial spyware.

More than 15 months after the Data Protection Authority started an investigation on the bugged cellphones of public officials and other individuals, it is still not yet clear who sent some of the spyware-infected messages.

Eleven people whose phones were infected with illegal spyware Predator received a message from the same phone number, according to a report by Mega channel on Wednesday, in new revelations pertaining to the ongoing judicial investigation into Greece's spyware scandal.