Tracking in spyware and citizen surveillance such as Pegasus, represents a threat to democracy

AKEL MEP Giorgos Georgiou

4 May 2022

MEPs in the European Parliament on Wednesday referred to violations of the rights of European citizens and blows to the rule of law as a result of the use of the “Pegasus” spying tracking software, demanding greater scrutiny and accountability from Governments that appear to have been affected by the use of the software.

The use of tracking software by EU member states against individuals, including MEP’s, and the violation of fundamental rights was discussed in the plenary in Strasbourg in the presence of representatives of the European Commission.

Last March, the European Parliament announced the establishment of a “Committee of Inquiry into the use of Pegasus and equivalent spying surveillance software” assigned with the task of carrying out an investigation into allegations of breaches of EU law in the use of the surveillance software by, among others, Hungary and Poland.

Tracking software, such as Pegasus, constitute a threat to democracy, AKEL and Left MEP Giorgos Georgiou, who is part of the Parliamentary Committee investigating the use of the Pegasus software, pointed out in his intervention in the plenary of the European Parliament.

Their use, the AKEL MEP said, is undermining the very pillars of democracy, the freedom of the press, the presumption of innocence, the right to privacy, freedom of expression and the freedom of trade union organisation. “The tragedy is that their use is not confined to authoritarian regimes. Even democratic governments are persecuting politicians, activists, journalists and political dissidents,” he pointed out.

Giorgos Georgiou said we are confronted with a global technological catastrophe and a “new evil, digital war”. He called for action to be taken to curb the global software interception industry, with a moratorium, he said, on their sale and transfer until a global framework with demands for transparency in accordance with the rule of law is established.

Furthermore, the AKEL MEP also called for the victims of such software to be able to sue governments and companies involved in the surveillance industry and ended his intervention by saying that “we will proceed to look into this issue until the very end.”