Mounting exploitation of commercial cyber intrusion tools, including spyware, is aimed to be addressed by the UK and France in joint discussions as part of the Pall Mall Process, according to The Record, a news site by cybersecurity firm Recorded Future.
Insights from industry organizations, states, and civil society experts regarding ideal commercial cyber intrusion capabilities would be sought during the consultation and be shared with French government partners and other stakeholders next year, said the UK government in a statement.
While the consultation has been a significant move towards helping establish commercial hacking tool use standards, different beliefs in cyber intrusion tool usage remain, said UK Offensive Cyber Working Group Lead Andrew Dwyer. Such a development follows a report from the UK's Government Communications Headquarters detailing spyware purchases across over 80 countries during the last 10 years, some of which leveraged the tools to stifle human rights activists, dissidents, and journalists.
