Overnight, reports began circulating in Israeli media attempting to discredit
#PegasusProject
by twisting the words of an
@amnesty
statement.
The twisted version caught fire online and is now being parroted by Indian politicians.
A small
#thread
on
#misinformation
:
1/10
Hier, vers 16h, je reçois un mail que j'attends depuis longtemps.
18 mois après avoir déposé ma demande de naturalisation française, 5 ans depuis que j'arrive en France, je suis désormais français.
Pendant qqs heures c'est l'extase. Puis la France, mon nouveau pays, me déçoit.
An MIT study from 2018 found that fake news travels 70 percent faster on social media than the truth.
Let's flip this trend.
#PegasusProject
#Misinformation
10/10
Huge
#Pegasus
story out of India. Trade documents obtained by
@OCCRP
indicate purchase by Intelligence Bureau of hardware that could be used for spying.
Per
@tenacioustek
: "strong and alarming evidence of surveillance transfers with Indian authorities."
Today,
@amnesty
shut down these rumours, writing: "Amnesty categorically stands by Pegasus Project data set" and that "the data is irrefutably linked to potential targets of NSO Group’s Pegasus spyware."
Read the statement here:
9/?
@IndiaToday
published this information citing the tweet by the journalist with more than 70,000 followers and the title:
"Amnesty says never claimed leaked phone numbers were of NSO Pegasus Spyware list"
8/?
Another day, another case filed against
@RanaAyyub
, this time in
#Karnataka
. A barrage of cases that has prevented her from doing her work as a journalist.
Another case has been registered against me, in Karnataka, by the same Hindu right wing group, for ‘hurting Hindu sentiments’ in my interview on the Hijab ban and the intimidation of Muslim women. To the government and its cronies, THIS WONT STOP ME FROM SPEAKING THE TRUTH.
By morning, news that the list was "indicative" of NSO clients rather than "targets of potential surveillance by NSO clients," was everywhere:
An advisor for
#Indian
Min. of Information & Broadcasting tweeted the story was "laughable."
The counter-narrative was spun.
7/10
Not just another day at the office for
@thewire_in
after
#PegasusProject
Policeman arrived today with inane inquiries. 'Who's Vinod Dua?' 'Who's Swara Bhaskar?' 'Can I see your rent agreement?' 'Can I speak to Arfa?'
Asked why he'd come: "Routine check for Aug 15"
Strange.
So many stories to highlight as part of
#PegasusProject
but want to shine some light on one this morning: SAR Geelani.
A prof at Delhi University, Geelani was also an advocate for the release of political prisoners. His phone was hacked for two years up until his death in 2019.
Cherry-picking quotes, the author cast doubt on the list of potential targets selected by NSO clients.
"Amnesty International has never presented this list as a 'NSO Pegasus Spyware List.'"
And later: "This is a list indicative of the interests of the company's clients."
3/10
The article in question was posted in Calcalist with a photo of a smiling Shalev Hulio (NSO founder and CEO) and the title:
"Amnesty clarifies: The list of 50,000 phone numbers is not directly related to NSO"
It went live at 6:15 pm on Wednesday.
2/10
#Breaking
: At least 180 journalists around the world were selected as potential targets of surveillance by clients of NSO Group, new
#PegasusProject
investigation reveals. My story for
@FbdnStories
:
#SCOOP
: One year ago today, journalist Shashikant Warishe was killed in India. With
@FbdnStories
&
@IndianExpress
we investigated his death, finding a trail of money between the accused killer and a proposed refinery project worth $44 billion.
#StolenLands
On devrait faire l'inverse. La France qui se lève tôt et de couche tard, c'est les immigrés. L'autre jour j'ai pris un train tôt, dans le métro il n'y avait quasiment que des visages noirs. La France qui prépare vos croissants et vos Jeux Olympiques c'est les immigrés.
Criminaliser les immigrés c'est les pousser vers la délinquance, vers une vie d'ombre. C'est ce qu'on appelle en anglais un "self-fulfilling prophecy," on crée le monstre qu'on veut abattre.
“Fundamentally I’m a socialist because I value people’s lives over profits. My vision for a democratic socialist society is one in which everyone is cared for.” Wise words from
@JuliaCarmel__
and brilliant reporting by
@SamAdlerBell
.
#DSA
#NewYork
Mais j'avoue que moi aussi j'ai peur. Peur que l'extrême droite prend le pouvoir en 2027, peur que cette loi n'est que le début. Peur du fascisme ambiante en Europe.
Ce matin à Paris il faisait beau, avec un grand ciel bleu. J'espère que les gens vont se réveiller.
Love this pic. I've never known
@svaradarajan
to not be smiling.
However, important to note that it's absolutely crazy that he is even here in the first place!!!
Just another day in the life of an Editor in Modi’s India. Waiting for the IO at Tilak Marg Police Station, Delhi to answer questions about a Jan 2019 story on Zee/Essel based on a criminal complaint filed by the company two years later, a copy of which was never shared with us!
Some interesting details about
#India
in the NYT's
#Pegasus
investigation (link here: ), including:
- Pegasus as centerpiece of $2 billion weapons package
- India's voting record on Palestine
- Modi's famous barefoot walk with Netanyahu
Mais au lieu d'investir dans des centres d'hébergement, des cours de français, des stages, ce gouvernement investit dans du gaz lacrymogène pour expulser des campements, de la police à la frontière, des drones et des scanneurs.
With 12 journalists from
@_elfaro_
potentially targeted with
#Pegasus
, per Apple, that brings the number of potential journalist victims around the world to more than 200.
12 miembros de El Faro recibieron un correo electrónico de la empresa
@Apple
que advierte de un posible espionaje de “atacantes patrocinados por el Estado”. La alerta también llegó a dos dirigentes de organizaciones de sociedad civil en
#ElSalvador
.
Le gouvernement Macron, soutenu idéologiquement par le RN, LR et Marine le Pen, passe sa loi immigration. Je ne dois pas vous lister ses déboires xénophobes et racistes.
Mais je pense que je devrais expliquer la peur que cette loi engendre pour les étrangers. J'en ai été un.
Dire que les étrangers sont des criminels, mettre ça chaque semaine sur le compte Twitter du ministre de l'intérieur, c'est une violence. Pour rester en France, il faut être EXEMPLAIRE. L'état français ne te laisse pas une marge d'erreur.
C'est difficile de souligner à quel point intégrer en France est difficile - et je suis un homme blanc, qui parle français, qui peut citer Astérix Mission Cléopâtre, qui a fait Sciences Po, etc.
Dès l'arrivée on fait face à une véritable montagne de régulations, de règles.
Merci à tous.tes pour le soutien ! Face à l'extrême droite, on continuera à exercer, enquêter, révéler.
Soutien aux camarades
@LouisWitter
,
@AriaLavrilleux
,
@edwyplenel
et plein d'autres.
Ça me réchauffe le cœur 🥰
The
@nytimes
weighs in on the fake Modi cover: "Resharing or circulating photoshopped images online only adds to misinformation and uncertainty, at a time when truthful, trusted journalism is needed most."
This is a completely fabricated image, one of many in circulation featuring Prime Minister Modi. All of our factual reporting on Narendra Modi can be found at:
On a toujours l'impression de ne pas pouvoir cocher toutes les cases. Pour avoir un logement, il faut un compte bancaire, pour un compte bancaire, un numéro de téléphone. Un numéro de téléphone il faut une adresse.
The International Press Institute announced on Wednesday that The Wire has won the 2021 Free Media Pioneer Award, as “a leader in India’s digital news revolution and an unflinching defender of independent, high-quality journalism”.
@globalfreemedia
La pref est un énigme, souvent impossible de prendre rdv.
Nous passons nos vies dans des salles d'attente, à ranger nos dossiers et attendre que notre numéro soit appelé. Pour imprimer un document, il faut sortir du bâtiment trouver un magasin informatique. (Oui ça existe tjrs)
Heureusement qu'en France (ainsi qu'aux États Unis) il y a des acteurs sociaux qui luttent pour ces gens là. Je pense à
@Utopia_56
,
@MSolidarites
,
@MdM_France
.
J'espère, moi aussi, d'utiliser ma position de privilège, mon statut de français pour apporter ma petite pierre.
Since 2019
@OfficialSauravD
has been asking the Indian government for information on
#Pegasus
. Today - the day of the SC decision on whether to probe
#PegasusSnoopgate
- he reveals just how little investigation happened after the 2019 WhatsApp revelations.
Pretty crazy week to turn 28... Launching
#PegasusProject
, going on
@IndiaAheadNews
and ... my alarm clock singing me happy birthday this morning, which was weird.
NEW
#StoryKillers
: A leak of nearly 50k documents from Spanish reputation management company Eliminalia reveals dirty tactics: fake sites, spoofing EU, fraudulent copyright claims.
Here's my write-up for
@FbdnStories
:
Incredibly excited to share the latest
@FbdnStories
project:
#StoryKillers
An absolutely astonishing global investigation into the world of
#disinformation
mercenaries, starting from the story of assassinated journalist
#GauriLankesh
.
Stories starting this Tuesday. 👀
1 journalist was murdered.
100 continued her work on fake news.
Forbidden Stories and 30 media outlets teamed up to reveal the deadly disinformation industry, which threatens global democracy.
🔴 New revelations Tuesday.
#StoryKillers
Crucial letter from my editors
@sandrinerigaud
and
@laurentrichard0
in
@guardian
(translation by me!).
"The collaboration of journalists from around the world is without a doubt one of the best defences against these violent attacks on global democracy."
Dream as a 21-year-old journalist entering the profession: Write for The Atlantic.
Dream as a 31-year-old journalist having seen the downfall of that magazine: Write for
@curaffairs
.
Thank you to
@NathanJRobinson
for calling them out on their BS.
Some ~ personal ~ news! After three and a half years, three apartments and a two-year masters in France, I have officially sent in my citizenship application.
Excited to (hopefully) become a citizen of a country with health insurance, paid vacation and the smelliest cheese.
Souvent on a l'impression de prouver sa volonté de rester en France en fonction de paperasse qu'on accumule.
Et pourtant, jusqu'à la, ça valait le coup. Les APL, les AME, ces acronymes qui sont maintenant grands publics, c'est les premiers mots qu'on apprend.
What do a viral emu, a French TV presenter and the Kenyan election have in common? All of them were pawns in a vast disinfo op run by shadowy Israelis.
After
#Pegasus
, I didn't think I'd ever participate in a wilder investigation. This one comes close:
.
@OnReality_Check
| Phineas Rueckert (
@PhineasJFR
), Journalist, Forbidden Stories, on the New York Times' latest report which says that India bought the
#Pegasus
spyware in around 2017, when Modi visited Israel.
Ça me rappelle ce que fait le soi disant "centre" aux Etats Unis, mon autre pays. La criminalisation des noirs ? C'était Bill Clinton (autre barrage a l'extrême droite par excellence). La sécurisation de la frontière avec le Mexique et la vague d'expulsions ? Obama, puis Biden.
SCOOP
#StoryKillers
:
@FbdnStories
obtained a brochure for an open-source intelligence (
#OSINT
) tool that can also be used for phishing, social engineering and geolocation of targets.
We tied the brochure to Singapore-based firm S2T Unlocking Cyberspace:
In personal/professional news, today's the first day of my new gig covering science and environment at
@AFP
. Excited to learn from Anthropocene superstars
@marlowehood
,
@patrickgaley
and
@Kelly_Macnamara
over the next couple of months as we test the waters of the WFH internship.
"Journalists who challenge the system fight an uphill battle to do their jobs, often at great risk to their lives."
Shashikant Warishe, killed
Rupesh Singh, imprisoned
Kanishk Tiwari, assaulted
Important piece by
@newslaundry
on threats to Indian press:
In October I spoke with
@zoo_bear
for
@FbdnStories
about the threats he faces as a fact checker in
#India
.
This week he was arrested, for an old tweet. Months ago, he basically predicted step-by-step exactly how it would happen.
In India, fact-checking can put you behind bars.
On June 28, fact-checker
@zoobear
was arrested by Indian police. His crime? A 2018 tweet about an old Hindi film, taken by the ruling party as ‘hurting religious sentiment’ in the country.
EXCLUSIVE: The
@QueensEagle
just caught up with
@AOC
at the
@GrowNYC
market in Elmhurst. We talked with her about the
#QueensDA
race, the movement to close Rikers with
#NoNewJails
and how her office is protecting immigrants against
@ICEgov
raids. Story coming soon!
Had to say "au revoir" to my
@QueensEagle
fam today. So proud to have been a part of this scrappy
#localnews
crew this summer, and excited to see them keep spreading their wings.
#Queens
#SwoopScoop
#EagleButt
A few more stories coming before I head back to Paris, so stay tuned!
Crazy story about how the Indian government is using the country's biometric fingerprinting system AADHAAR to profile voters and, potentially, influence key elections. Great reporting by
@Kum_Sambhav
and
@reporters_co
.
Horrible news from India. Not the first time a journalist has been threatened or killed for reporting on sand mafias.
Before him, Shubham Mani Tripathi, Jagendra Singh, Sandeep Kothari, the list goes on...
If I'm not mistaken,
#StoryKillers
might be the
@FbdnStories
project where we publish the most original articles.
Little appreciation
#thread
for my amazing colleagues:
1/
After his death, his son kept his iPhone. Two years later, journalists at
@thewire_in
were able to perform a forensic analysis of the phone, finding traces of
#Pegasus
. "We have always feared that the family is being tracked. This forensic has only confirmed our suspicion."
Around the world journalists are being imprisoned, hacked, even killed. So why should we care about copyright law?
#Thread
about the "subtle censorship" of a reputation management firm that uses manipulative methods bury the truth.
#StoryKillers
1/14
"Ever since billionaire Elon Musk took over Twitter last October, the company has increasingly acceded to government requests for censorship and surveillance."
Great work
@OfficialSauravD
continuing to hold social media platforms accountable in
#India
.
#StoryAlert
🚨
On 31 March this year, Kalim Ahmed
@akhmxt
, a journalist by profession, received an email from Twitter with the subject line “Twitter Notice of Withholding”. The social media giant informed him that it received a “legal removal demand”...
Excellent follow-up on the
#GauriLankesh
story by
@prajwalmanipal
, who has been following the case closely.
He explains how a video of a speech Gauri gave was taken out of context, and used to legitimate violence.
Today is my first day as an investigative reporter at
@FbdnStories
. Excited to join the excellent team in Paris and work with reporters around the world to ensure that no story is silenced. Check out their excellent work here:
Dans le train pour aller dans le Nord, j'ai dévoré la moitié de ce livre déjà. Excellent résumé de la politique violente envers les personnes exilées par
@LouisWitter
Big
#Pegasus
update from our colleagues at
@DIEZEIT
: The German Federal Criminal Police Office reportedly bought Pegasus spyware in 2019. The government had been asked three times previously whether it uses the technology.
In
#India
, five journalists including
@paranjoygt
and
@RupeshKSingh85
have sought to invoke judicial oversight mechanism to bring their
#Pegasus
case to the Supreme Court, saying intrusions into their phones violated IT Act. First PIL hearing on August 5.
THIS SUNDAY: We at
@FbdnStories
, along with 65 journalists around the world, are excited to share Mining Secrets, a global investigation to pursue the work of reporters threatened for covering environmental scandals.
#PressFreedom
#Guatemala
#MiningSecrets
#BadSources
- our latest investigation into how Indian news agency ANI repeatedly quoted non-existent bloggers, experts, journalists and think tanks spreading anti-Pakistan/China narratives in India. 🧵1/N
#BadSources
#StoryKillers
Love this sign on the Coulée Verte in Paris. "This is a space for strolling. The practice of jogging is tolerated to the degree that it does not disturb those who are strolling."
Congrats to friends at
@OCCRP
for the
#RotenbergFiles
. An impressive and timely investigation into how Russian oligarchs are able to avoid sanctions by taking advantage of loopholes in the laws of democratic neighbours, including France.
Last but (hopefully?) not least, my investigation for the
#CartelProject
looks at the ocean of guns making their way to
#Mexico
, notably from Europe, and the impact this has on journalists. With a whole lot of help from our friends at
@stopusarmstomx
:
“I can't sit by and watch my people get slaughtered. Screw your optics, I'm going in," Robert Bowers, before killing 11 in a synagogue.
"Well someone has to have the bravery to take it to the real world, and
I guess that has to be me," Dylann Roof, before killing 9 in a church.
For two semesters, more than 30 students from the
@sciencespoEDJ
investigated dozens of companies and administrations around the world that let their workers die in the heat. Today they published their first COLLABORATIVE investigation 1/
Congrats to
@mariaressa
, who we had the honor to profile with
@pulitzercenter
, on her Nobel Prize!
Everyone should check out
@rapplerdotcom
, a team of young journalists reporting on human rights, corruption, extrajudicial killings and other sensitive topics in the Philippines.
NEW: in my first for
@newlinesmag
, I wrote about
#Unibeton
, an abandoned cement building north of Paris that became a refuge for about 400 north and central African migrants and last month was evacuated, some say, to make room for the
#Paris2024
Olympics:
Author of The God of Small Things and The Ministry of Utmost Happiness Arundhati Roy pens an essay on the meaning of
#Pegasus
scandal in
#India
.
"Here in India, the summer of dying is quickly morphing into what looks very much like a summer of spying."
Today marks 2️⃣ years since the launch of the
#PegasusProject
!
🎯 Then: 37 infections & thousands of potential targets
🌏 Now: 420
#Pegasus
infections, incl. 120 journalists
⬇️ Watch
@KarinePfenniger
's video, feat
@panyiszabolcs
, that recaps the findings
I've been getting up at 5am since April to write before beginning each day's work. It's cathartic, horrific, and very inspiring :)
#CourageON
#HoldTheLine
Thanks,
@hollydrawsinink
, for cover design & look forward to working together,
@hanateraiewood
!
Comme j'ai oublié de faire le personal news tweet la première fois je vous confirme que je suis effectivement un vrai journaliste !
Ceci est peut être un subtweet,
@Twitter
@TwitterFrance
qui a rejeté trois fois ma demande de vérification...