US Government Expands Blacklist of Spyware Companies, Including Israeli and European Firms

The U.S. Commerce Department has added two Israeli-owned digital surveillance firms, Intellexa and Cytox, to its economic trade "entity list," which blacklists companies acting against American interests. Both firms, owned by different Israeli nationals, have been involved in the production and sale of military-grade spyware. This move follows the blacklisting of other Israeli cyber firms, NSO Group and Candiru, last year. The decision to place these firms on the blacklist has led to a crackdown on Israeli cyber exports and a brain drain within the industry. The addition of Intellexa and Cytox to the list demonstrates the U.S.'s determination to curb the international proliferation of spyware, regardless of where the firms operate from.