Serbian student protesters accuse of using spyware against movement members

Serbia's student protest movement claims that the phones of at least 14 of its members were targeted with spyware earlier this year and warns of the risk of such tools being used ahead of early legislative elections scheduled for late October, AFP reports. Representatives of the movement presented the results of laboratory analyses in Belgrade on Wednesday, according to which the devices of at least 14 people were compromised during the March municipal by-elections. According to Ela Zekovic, one of the movement's members, the targeted individuals include mainly students and activists, but also a deputy and a municipal councilor from opposition parties. "The targets were not chosen at random. The targeted individuals are colleagues who are part of our operational teams," she said. Andrijana Ristic, a representative of the SHARE Foundation, a Serbian organization specializing in the defense of digital rights, said that two spy programs were identified on the analyzed devices: Pegasus, sold by the Israeli company NSO, and NoviSpy, developed in Serbia. According to her, the results were confirmed by Citizen Lab, a research laboratory at the University of Toronto, as well as a laboratory of the organization Amnesty International. "To date, this is the most significant documented wave of use of this type of spyware in the country,” Andrijana Ristic said.

• Access to data and functions of phones

The analysis published by the SHARE Foundation shows that the two programs can allow access to messages and location data, as well as to the camera and microphone of the devices. Ela Zekovic said that among the programs identified is "one of the most sophisticated spy software,” which she claimed is sold only to states and costs "millions.” Without naming anyone responsible for the surveillance operations, the student movement representative linked these suspicions to the approaching early legislative elections. "If someone could do something like this during municipal elections, it doesn't take much imagination to predict what is in store for the upcoming national elections,” she said.

• Student movement calls for early elections

Serbia has been facing a large-scale protest movement since November 2024, triggered by the collapse of the roof of the Novi Sad train station, an accident that left 16 people dead. The protests were led mainly by students, who initially demanded a transparent investigation into the tragedy and responsibility for it. Later, the demands expanded, and the organization of early elections became one of the movement's main demands. Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic recently announced that early legislative elections would be held at the end of October.

• Authorities deny involvement

Serbian Parliament Speaker Ana Brnabic has denied any involvement by the authorities in the alleged surveillance operations. "Absolutely not!” she told Euronews Serbia. Brnabic also questioned the conclusions presented by the student movement, arguing that there is no evidence that the spyware was used for the purposes claimed.