- OFAC removed Merom Harpaz, Andrea Gambazzi and Sara Hamou from its sanctions list
- They were previously sanctioned for alleged links to Predator spyware through the Intellexa Consortium.
- Predator spyware remains active; Recent reports show attacks on Pakistani human rights lawyer
Merom Harpaz, Andrea Nicola Constantino Hermes Gambazzi and Sara Aleksandra Fayssal Hamou, three people who were sanctioned by the United States for alleged links to commercial spyware products, recently had their bans lifted.
In a new press release issued by the US Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) earlier this week, it was briefly stated that these three were removed from OFAC’s Specially Designated Nationals (SDN) list.
The announcement does not explain what changed and why these three are no longer under sanctions.
When a person is placed on OFAC’s SDN list, any assets held under U.S. jurisdiction are frozen, U.S. persons and companies are generally prohibited from doing business with them, and violations can result in serious civil or criminal penalties.
News of the sanctions first broke in March 2024, when Intellexa Consortium, the company behind the famous Predator spyware, was said to be blacklisted. Among those sanctioned at the time was Sara Aleksandra Fayssal Hamou, a corporate relocation specialist who provides management services.
Spyware remains active
Half a year later, in September 2024, the US government initiated a new round of sanctions that included, among others, Merom Harpaz (senior executive of the consortium) and Andrea Nicola Constantino Hermes Gambazzi (beneficial owner of Thalestris Limited and Intellexa Limited, members of the Intellexa Consortium).
This time there was no mention of other members and business entities sanctioned at that time.
Predator is a commercial spyware that grants access to data stored on and transmitted from target devices such as smartphones. It is a powerful malware that operates without interaction with the victim and was allegedly often sold to authoritarian governments targeting political opponents, dissidents, journalists, human rights activists and similar individuals.
However, the sanctions don’t seem to be working so well, as reports just a few weeks ago said that a Pakistani human rights lawyer was attacked with spyware via WhatsApp.
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