Serbian authorities are using sophisticated digital surveillance technology to spy on journalists and activists in the Balkan country, Amnesty International claims in a new report published today.
According to the report - "Digital Prison" - Serbian authorities used spyware that "provides Serbian authorities with extensive surveillance capabilities once installed on the target's device," AFP reports.
The report includes testimony from a journalist and an activist who accused authorities of secretly installing spyware on their devices while they were detained and during an interview with officials.
"Our investigation reveals how Serbian authorities have used surveillance technologies and digital repression tactics as tools for wider state control and repression targeting civil society," said Dinoshika Dissanayake, Amnesty's Deputy Regional Director for Europe.
The report highlights the use of Cellebrite and NoviSpy software and forensic tools to target phones and devices belonging to members of civil society.
"NoviSpy can capture sensitive personal data from the target phone and provide capabilities to remotely turn on the phone's microphone or camera," Amnesty stated.
"Cellebrite's forensic tools are used both to unlock the phone before infecting it with spyware and to extract data from the device," the organisation added.
Independent journalists and civil society groups in Serbia have long accused the government and its allies of persecuting their members with defamatory statements, lawsuits and public threats. | BGNES
