Governments deliver zero-click spyware via ad networks, Citizen Lab reveals
ChuckDBrooks · x · 2026-10-16
- Citizen Lab (University of Toronto) reports that Israeli firm Discover-Tech, posing as a legitimate ad company, acts as a "bridge between ad vendors and the mercenary spyware ecosystem."
- Spyware makers abuse global ad networks to serve malicious adverts targeting specific individuals or devices almost anywhere, enabling zero-click hacks that invisibly steal data.
- At least two zero-click spyware vendors, Candiru and Bindecy, used Discover-Tech's platform to target people; both sell surveillance products to government clients.
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