Italian Government Faces Scrutiny Over Paragon Solutions Hacking Controversy
Cabinet Undersecretary Alfredo Mantovano addressed Lower House Speaker Lorenzo Fontana in a letter earlier this week, asserting that the Italian government has disclosed all declassified information regarding the Graphite military-grade hacking software developed by Israeli company Paragon Solutions.
In the letter, Mantovano indicated that the Parliament’s COPASIR security committee, which monitors Italy's intelligence operations, had reviewed the Paragon issue. Minister for Relations with Parliament, Luca Ciriani, delivered the only permissible information to lawmakers during a question time session at the Lower House on February 12.
The letter stressed that all other facets of the case remain classified, leaving discussions confined to the government and COPASIR without direct parliamentary reporting.
Adding to the controversy, Ciriani recently rejected claims that Paragon Solutions had ended its client relationship with Italy due to uproar over the supposed unlawful deployment of its hacking software to spy on journalists and activists, including those in Italy.
Ciriani defended the Italian intelligence operations, stating that, similar to many global agencies, the Italian services have employed tools offered by Paragon Solutions for many years in service of national security, specifically to combat terrorism and criminal organizations. He emphasized that the spy software had been utilized in compliance with the Constitution and existing laws, particularly after allegations emerged that the company, reportedly engaged only with state entities, had severed ties with Rome.
Reports further indicate that Luca Casarini, the founder of the migrant-rescue NGO Mediterranea Saving Humans, and Francesco Cancellato, the editor-in-chief of investigative news platform Fanpage, are among the individuals who may have been targeted by espionage in Italy.
Simultaneously, parliamentary sources unveiled that chief whips from centre-left opposition parties have called upon Speaker Fontana to urgently convene a conference of parliamentary group leaders. This gathering aims to address the government's failure to adequately respond to inquiries about the Paragon case posed by lawmakers.
The opposition emphasized that the lack of further reporting to the Parliament represents a significant breach of transparency principles and undermines its supervisory role over government actions, as highlighted in their letter to Fontana.
Related Sources: