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June 15, 2025 – Italy –
Digital security researchers at Citizen Lab have uncovered that Paragon Solutions’ “Graphite” spyware—a military-grade, zero-click surveillance tool—was used to target at least three prominent journalists in Europe, including two based in Italy.
In Italy, the latest victim is Ciro Pellegrino, who heads the Naples bureau of Fanpage it. Pellegrino’s phone showed forensic traces of Graphite—a confirmation that matches earlier evidence linking the spyware to Francesco Cancellato, Fanpage’s editor-in-chief. Citizen Lab also identified a third “prominent European journalist” who requested anonymity. All three phones were infected via an Apple iMessage zero-click exploit attributed to the same Paragon client.
Paragon Solutions, an Israeli cybersecurity firm acquired by U.S.-based AE Industrial Partners, claims it only sells Graphite to democratic governments with strict terms forbidding use against journalists or civil society. Despite these assurances, the spyware’s deployment against journalists has triggered political uproar in Italy and across the EU.
Italian parliamentary intelligence oversight (COPASIR) confirmed the government hired Paragon for “limited” surveillance, targeting fugitives, terrorism rings, organised crime, and irregular migrants, with judicial authorization . It acknowledged using Graphite on migrant-activist phones but disputed any confirmed targeting of journalists, though forensic data now contradicts this claim.
Copasir noted Paragon offered to investigate the hacks further, but Italian authorities declined, citing national security concerns. In response to growing backlash, Italy terminated its Paragon contract in June 2025.
The revelation has alarmed press freedom advocates and EU lawmakers, who warn that state use of mercenary spyware without transparency poses a grave threat to democratic norms. A European Parliament debate is scheduled for June 16 to scrutinize both government oversight and Paragon’s export controls.
As Europe grapples with this surveillance scandal, the case underscores how digital espionage tools—originally sold to counter crime—can be repurposed against critical voices, endangering journalists and democratic accountability.
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