You are viewing the chat in desktop mode. Click here to switch to mobile view.
X
Special lecture on the Pegasus Report by Michael Safi
powered byJotCast
Anshika Patnaik
5:18
5:29
Welcome to the special lecture on the Pegasus Report by Michael Safi
5:33
Michael Safi tells that he was one of the four Guardian journalists, who was given access to the database in the Pegasus Project.
5:35
Michael adds that the implications of Pegasus software extended to India.
5:37
Michael reveals that when the phone numbers were traced,  Prashant Kishore's phone was infected with Pegasus. He also says that a lot of work needed to be done to trace the pattern of the phone number.
5:41
While talking about the software, he tells that data is been misused against journalists. It is used to promote the government's agenda. Surprisingly, nothing about NSO could be found.
5:42
Michael believes that many countries still have access to the spyware.
5:43
Talking about the investigation in such cases, Michael claims, "Investigation requires close coordination. How do you go about conducting an investigation when journalists’ phones are compromised on?"
5:44
5:45
Sharing his personal psychological dilemma, Michael tells that he is conscious about personal conversations that he has with family members. He says that the whole atmosphere is disturbing for him.
5:46
Michael feels, having Pegasus in your phone is like having someone continuously listening to you.
5:48
While shading light upon the investigation process of Pegasus, he tells that they built an entirely independent system of communication which even NSO couldn’t breach.
5:50
Michael tells, " I remember my first week working on this. The first story I worked on involved priests, whom I had to call upon false pretense. The mission was to ask them to upload a backup of their phones to Amnesty International so that Amnesty International traces Pegasus on their phones. We had to be cryptic about our investigation. It felt like we suddenly moved from the world you trusted to a world of spy game".
5:51
5:52
Michael says it was challenging to urge people to participate with us in this process of investigation.
5:55
Michael asserts that when his team focused on Indian demographics, they realized Rahul Gandhi's phone was compromised. When they reached out to tell him, he wasn't surprised at all. He further added that Gandhi had already changed his number thinking the phone was hacked.
5:58
Michael reveals that when they focused on Rahul Gandhi's case, they realized that five of his friends alongside two members of his staff also were attacked.
6:00
In the case of Prashant Kishore, Michael tells that he was being spied on since elections in West Bengal.
6:01
Michael questions- What does this mean? Was another government was spying on Kishore to subvert Indian Democracy? He states that the Indian Government does not address this but clearly knows who the perpetrators are!
Michael tells that Emmanuel McCrone, PM of South Africa was also targeted by Pegasus. He says, "We informed NSO and various governments and victims.
6:03
6:04
Michael asserts that one of the victims was Imran Khan. He tells, "I called him because his phone number was hacked. I showed him evidence and clearly, I had to access the information but Imran Khan hung up the phone. Michael says that he was shocked by the Pakistani Government's ignorant response.
6:06
Talking about his bizarre experience while informing people about they being attacked by Pegasus, Michael tells, "I remember cautioning someone about Pegasus who mentioned that they are from The Guardian and the response was “okay, thank you!”
6:07
Michael claims that India had the biggest reaction than any other country because of some credible media, opposition, etc.
6:08
Seeing media being highly critical, Michael thinks that there is still hope in India.
Michael believes that a factual government can shake the government.
6:10
Michael tells that India's response to this breaking news, showed that journalists had value and truth had a power which can cut through all the noises.
6:12
Michael asserts that they were concerned that if they approached the Indian Government with names identified, there will be propaganda and backfires.
6:24
In comparison to other countries involved, India had the most telling reaction of all. Is that really a reflection of a robust democracy (Considering the India government is yet to react!)
YES (71.4% | 5 votes)
 
NO (28.6% | 2 votes)
 
Total Votes: 7
6:25
Michael believes that the reality of being a journalist in 2021 is that there are a lot of narratives and the governments will push anything that’s in their favor.
6:28
Michael tells, "We as journalists have to have faith in whatever we do and that our work is rooted in evidence".
6:29
6:31
While responding to a question on how do the journalists protect their sources in a time of surveillance, Michael tells, "The lesson of the Pegasus project is that do not trust your phone. At any point, it could be used to tamper with your life and information. Ask yourselves, if someone listened to this conversation, how can I minimize the damage on the other person. The government could be listening in. So, act accordingly."
6:52
Michael says, "I believe that the truth has power, even if it looks like no one’s listening. "
6:55
"NSO is simply wrong.They say it’s only for national security purposes, which clearly isn’t the case. They’re breaking their own rules."- Michael Safi
6:57
This brings us to the end of special lecture. Thank you so much for joining. Stay tuned for more such content!
Connecting…