This is great. Would also like to add that yesterday a criminal complaint was filed in the UK for a similar situation: https://www.privacyinternational.org/press-releases/privacy-international-seeking-investigation-into-computer-spying-on-refugee-in-uk
Mustafa On 18/02/14 18:16, Nate Cardozo wrote: > Hi LibTech, > > Today, we sued the Ethiopian Government for its use of the malware > described in last year's Citizen Lab report. Thanks to Citizen Lab for > their amazing work. Details below. > > Best, > Nate > > -- > Nate Cardozo > Staff Attorney > Electronic Frontier Foundation > 815 Eddy Street > San Francisco, CA 94109 > [email protected] | 415.436.9333 x146 > > Help EFF defend our rights in the digital world > https://www.eff.org/donate > > > https://www.eff.org/press/releases/american-sues-ethiopian-government-spyware-infection > > February 18, 2014 > > > American Sues Ethiopian Government for Spyware Infection > > Months of Electronic Espionage Put American Citizen and Family at Risk > > Washington, D.C. - An American citizen living in Maryland sued the > Ethiopian government today for infecting his computer with secret > spyware, wiretapping his private Skype calls, and monitoring his entire > family's every use of the computer for a period of months. The > Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) is representing the plaintiff in > this case, who has asked the court to allow him to use the pseudonym Mr. > Kidane – which he uses within the Ethiopian community – in order to > protect the safety and wellbeing of his family both in the United States > and in Ethiopia. > > "We have clear evidence of a foreign government secretly infiltrating an > American's computer in America, listening to his calls, and obtaining > access to a wide swath of his private life," said EFF Staff Attorney > Nate Cardozo. "The current Ethiopian government has a well-documented > history of human rights violations against anyone it sees as political > opponents. Here, it wiretapped a United States citizen on United States > soil in an apparent attempt to obtain information about members of the > Ethiopian diaspora who have been critical of their former government. > U.S. laws protect Americans from this type of unauthorized electronic > spying, regardless of who is responsible." > > A forensic examination of Mr. Kidane's computer showed that the device > had been infected when he opened a Microsoft Word document that > contained hidden malware. The document had been an attachment to an > email message sent by agents of the Ethiopian government and forwarded > to Mr. Kidane. The spyware contained in the attachment was a program > called FinSpy, a suite of surveillance software marketed exclusively to > governments by the Gamma Group of Companies. In the several months > FinSpy was on Mr. Kidane's computer, it recorded a vast array of > activities conducted by users of the machine. Traces of the spyware > inadvertently left on his computer show that information – including > recordings of dozens of Skype phone calls – was surreptitiously sent to > a secret control server located in Ethiopia and controlled by the > Ethiopian government. > > The infection appears to be part of a systematic program by the > Ethiopian government to spy on perceived political opponents in the > Ethiopian diaspora around the world. Reports from human rights agencies > and news outlets have detailed Ethiopia's campaign of international > espionage, aimed at jailing opposition and undermining dissent. But > Ethiopia is not alone. CitizenLab – a group of researchers based at the > University of Toronto, Canada – has found evidence that governments > around the world use FinSpy and other technologies to spy on human > rights and democracy advocates across the globe. > > "The problem of governments violating the privacy of their political > opponents through digital surveillance is not isolated – it's already > big and growing bigger," said EFF Legal Director Cindy Cohn. "Yet > despite the international intrigue and genuine danger involved in this > lawsuit, at bottom it's a straightforward case. An American citizen was > wiretapped at his home in Maryland, and he's asking for his day in court > under longstanding American laws." > > In the complaint filed in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., > today, Mr. Kidane asks for a jury trial as well as damages for > violations of the U.S. Wiretap Act and state privacy law. The Ethiopian > Embassy in Washington received a courtesy copy of the lawsuit, and the > District Court will formally serve the Ethiopian Foreign Ministry in > Addis Ababa with copies of the papers in both English and Amharic. > > Richard M. Martinez, Mahesha P. Subbaraman, and Samuel L. Walling of > Robins, Kaplan, Miller & Ciresi L.L.P. are assisting EFF as co-counsel > on this case. > > For the full complaint in Kidane v. Ethiopia: > https://www.eff.org/document/complaint-32 > > For more on this case: > https://www.eff.org/cases/kidane-v-ethiopia > > Contacts: > > Nate Cardozo > Staff Attorney > Electronic Frontier Foundation > [email protected] > > Cindy Cohn > Legal Director > Electronic Frontier Foundation > [email protected] > > > > -- Liberationtech is public & archives are searchable on Google. Violations of list guidelines will get you moderated: https://mailman.stanford.edu/mailman/listinfo/liberationtech. 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