Arsenal Report No. 4 Confirms Pegasus Attack on IPhone of Rona Wilson, Key BK Accused  https://countercurrents.org/2021/12/arsenal-report-no-4-confirms-pegasus-attack-on-iphone-of-rona-wilson-key-bk-accused/ 

The present report identifies 49 different instances of Pegasus attack, and sometimes of successful infection, on Mr. Wilson's iPhone, between July 5, 2017 and April 10, 2018. This is striking given that Arsenal’s previous reports had already shown that Mr. Wilson’s computer had been hacked by the NetWire Remote Access Trojan (RAT) between June 13, 2016 and April 17, 2018 – covering the same period – in order to plant incriminating files on his computer. The same had been done to the computer of another accused in the Bhima Koregaon case, Surendra Gadling. Arsenal also confirmed that neither Mr. Wilson nor Mr. Gadling had ever opened the incriminating files in question.

Rona Wilson's iPhone Infected With Pegasus Spyware, Says New Forensic Report https://thewire.in/rights/rona-wilson-pegasus-iphone-arsenal   Arsenal Consulting’s director Mark Spencer had termed the attack on Wilson’s computer as a case of “aggressive surveillance”. Etienne Maynier, technologist at Amnesty International’s Security Lab noted that while many SMS-es were used to target Wilson’s phone, it is not clear what led to the infection of his phone. “There is no evidence that he clicked on the links in the SMS but we have only a partial view of the activity of his phone from backup data,” 

PUCL stresses the  *NEED TO DEVELOP NEW EVIDENTIARY PRINCIPLES & APPROACH FOR ELECTRONIC FORENSIC INVESTIGATORY REPORTS LIKE ARSENAL REPORT*

*PEGASUS ATTACK OF iPHONE OF RONA WILSON, KEY ACCUSED IN BHIMA KOREGAON CASE: NEW FORENSIC REPORT CONFIRMS ATTACK FOR OVER A YEAR!* Forensic Reports had earlier shown that evidence was Planted on his Computer to Incriminate other accused

In the Bhima Koregaon case, sixteen leading human rights defenders, lawyers, scholars, and artists have been jailed without trial for over three years under the draconian Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA). Speaking for the defense team, advocate Mihir Desai said that "the dual attack on Mr. Wilson's computer and phone over a period of two years is not just alarming, but something that should remind every democratic institution that illegal cyber - attacks can turn innocent citizens into alleged criminals who can then be jailed indefinitely."

It is now over 300 days since the first report revealing the NetWire attack and evidence-planting and nearly 150 days since the reports on the Pegasus attacks. Simple due diligence after these reports should have compelled the NIA to re-examine the devices...  If the NIA does not even care to investigate these aspects, how can it claim its actions are legitimate?

Prime Time With Ravish Kumar: Probe Agencies Ignoring Foreign Reports On Pegasus Spyware?     https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=evyQBaCD1fk  Dec 17, 2021

Arsenal Report No. IV, released on 17th December, 2021 

Supreme Court & Government on Pegasus: Tussle Inevitable? || Midweek Matters 36 by Parakala Prabhakar https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5vou1KHQzMY
Nov 3, 2021

On 27th October, the Supreme Court has pronounced an order constituting a Committee to probe the use of Pegasus spyware by the Indian government. The Committe with work under the supervision of a retired judge of the Supreme Court. In this Episode, Dr Parakala will share his reflections on what the Order's deeper significance is, what it tells about our Supreme Court's view of the fundamental principle of citizens' right to privacy, what the government thinks about accountability with regard to this fundamental principle, and how the divergence between these two positions is likely to play out in the weeks and months to come. He also meditates on what could be the consequences for India's democratic polity if this divergence leads to a tussle between the executive and the judiciary.

Earlier episode of Midweek Matters on Pegasus : https://youtu.be/NUUSYXhwoGM

46 page order: https://main.sci.gov.in/supremecourt/2021/16884/16884_2021_1_1501_30827_Judgement_27-Oct-2021.pdf

Joining the dots in the second coming of Pegasus https://www.thehindu.com/opinion/lead/joining-the-dots-in-the-second-coming-of-pegasus/article35529099.ece   Parakala Prabhakar July 26, 2021 This time, Pegasus shines a light on the Government for civil society to see it as a clear accountable entity . Post by Swan Singh

Joining the dots in the second coming of Pegasus (The Hindu, GS-2) Post by :Swarn Singh https://plutusias.com/joining-the-dots-in-the-second-coming-of-pegasus-the-hindu-gs-2/  July 26, 2021

Context:- Pegasus spyware has made the news when it spied on more than a hundred people. University of Toronto’s from Researchers Citizen Lab called up some telephone numbers in our country and informed them that their WhatsApp chats were compromised. There are some stirrings to this story but the controversy died out quietly and disappeared from our public discourse mainly because of central government adamancy and people’s apathy.

How central government is doing suppression of freedom of speech:-

There are many instances of Internet shutdowns
Use of the sedition law on critics and opposition of the Government’s policies
Frequent use of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA)
Rushing crucial pieces of legislation affecting core sectors of our economy through the Houses of Parliament without due deliverance and without due debate.

What is the law in India about phone tapping?

Section 92 of the CrPC (for call records, etc) authorised interception and monitoring of communications.
Rule 419A of the Telegraph Rules.
Rules formed under Sections 69 and 69B of the IT Act.
It is unclear when the Telegraph Act applies and when the IT Act applies.

Why are we concerned about phone tapping? A brief history about misuse of phone tapping:-

In 2012 the Himachal Pradesh government ordered the police agencies to recover over a lakh phone conversations of over a thousand people.
Gujrat government was embroiled in a controversy dubbed “Snoopgate”, with phone recordings alleged to be of him speaking to the head of an anti­terrorism unit to conduct covert surveillance on a young architect and her family members without any legal basis.
The United Progressive Alliance government in 2009 swore in an affidavit in the Supreme Court that the CBDT had placed Niira Radia under surveillance due to fears of her being a foreign spy.
Even private sector is not beyond such as the Essar group, have also been shown to engage in illegal surveillance.

What are the supreme court judgement regarding phone tapping:-

Kharak Singh case:- Though S.C. Said that there is no right to privacy but it has increased the area of liberty under article 21.
Puttaswamy Judgement:- Right to privacy is a fundamental right. Everyone has R2P and if violated, a person can move to supreme court.

What is the issue in the phone tapping:-

Unbridled power with the state.
Violation of privacy.
A continuous surveillance by the state, thereby turning into an absolute state.

Way forward:-

Intelligence agencies must be backed by the law.
There must be a synthesis between privacy and surveillance.
Accountability of government agencies such as a parliamentary oversight on it.
The Judiciary can make the Government accountable in the current circumstances.

Srinivas Kodali (@digitaldutta) Tweeted:
New policing practices alert: stop and search phone chats by the @hydcitypolice. Police are searching phone chats for words like ganja. Wait until they replace words with NRC, Modi or BJP.

Hyderabad: Vehicle checking in city by Excise team https://youtu.be/B4bCUC6Xhh4

Mainstream, VOL 62 No 15, April 13, 2024

 Part 4  Why Justice Sikri’s order on Aadhaar project and Aadhaar Act is unconstitutional – | Gopal Krishna Friday 12 April 2024  https://mainstreamweekly.net/article14531.html 

UIDAI’s UID/Aadhaar identifier project is not a scheme in isolation. These UID/Aadhaar linked initiatives are part of 360° surveillance initiative to record every aspect of Indians based on convergence of every imaginable database in furtherance of World Bank’s eTranform Initiative launched in partnership with France and South Korea as well as six MNCs Gemalto, IBM, L-1 Identity Solutions, Microsoft and Pfizer.

In his role as Secretary, Department of Electronics and Information Technology (DEITY), Satyanarayana informed the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Information Technology that he had no problem if intelligence agencies continue to collect the meta data of Indians in the wake of disclosures by Edward Snowden. Notably, the UID project which began in the DEITY and returned to DEITY which has been renamed as Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MEITY) after spending its formative years in the erstwhile Planning Commission of India. Given the fact that Criminal Procedure (Identification) Act 2022 has been enacted after the enactment of Aadhaar Act 2016 and the enactment of The DNA Technology (Use and Application) Regulation Bill, 2019 is imminent, it is apparent that UID, NPR, NJDG and ICJS are part of one and the same surveillance architecture, which is essentially a project of Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA). MHA and MEITY’s UIDAI are oblivious of the fact that metadata has the ability to redefine human existence in ways which are yet fully to be perceived. Mining of meta data results in the creation of new knowledge about individuals; something which even she/he did not possess.

 Part 5  Deactivating and Omitting Citizenship?| Gopal Krishna 024   https://mainstreamweekly.net/article14573.html Saturday 20 April 2  Mainstream, VOL 62 No 16-17, April 20, April 27, 2024 will efforts to undermine the fundamental right of Indians to move and transact freely around the country and to live without constantly having to prove who they are going to succeed or fail the test of constitutional morality, constitutionalism, and the constitution...

It is surprising that such a process of de-activation of Aadhaar Cards without any prior intimation and also without giving any opportunity of being heard to the card holders is in gross violation of the Regulation 29(1) of Aadhaar (Enrolment and Update) Regulations, 2016 and also in gross violation of natural justice….Every citizen in the State is in a state of fear on this matter I would like to know from you about the causes for such sudden action of de-activation of Aadhaar Cards without assigning reasons.”

..The personal sensitive information like biometric data that is collected in myriad disguises and through numerous tempting claims about its benefits is going to be purchased by banks and other financial institutions to be correlated with other data, and used for purposes that was neither agreed nor foreseen...

..The flawed assumption of Government of India that the benefits of biometric systems are sufficient to warrant use of biometric technology for financial transactions is misplaced. The citizens who are succumbing to such presumption are doing so because they are not informed about potential risks. The blatant use of financial rewards akin to bribes to promote citizen’s participation in biometric identification programs sets a very harmful precedent as it violates the principle of free and informed consent. Informed citizens and democratic legislatures can respond to it only through non-cooperation, civil disobedience and voting against parties which support the banker-biometric technology vendor nexus.