From Our Bureau
NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Thursday admonished the Centre for not cooperating in the Pegasus spyware row and fixed further hearing after four weeks.
A Bench headed by Chief Justice of India N V Ramana said only five out of 29 mobiles examined were found infected with malware but no conclusive proof of use of the controversial Israeli spyware that had created a huge hue and cry in the country.
It said a report submitted last month by a panel, headed by retied top court judge r V Raveendran said possibly five mobile phones were infected with some malware, but that does not mean it were Pegasus.
The Bench also comprising Justices Surya Kant and Hima Kohli said the panel’s lengthy report isin three parts, one suggesting to amend the law to protect the privacy of citizens and ensure cyber security of the nation. It, however, held that the details of the panel report may not be made public.
The report includes one from the technical committee, another by overseeing judge Justice Raveendran and the digital images of the phone examined for infection.
The report suggested that a country’s cyber security needs to be enhanced as it is necessary to ensure no unauthorised surveillance is allowed while protecting the privacy of the citizens.
It pointed out certain malwares that could be misused, violating the privacy of the citizens. It recommended some mechanism to check illegal surveillance and the private firms engaged in surveillance should be prosecuted.
