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1. Cyprus expected to captivate at Venice Art Biennale

Cyprus is set to make its mark at the prestigious 60th International Exhibition of Contemporary Art – Venice Art Biennale, slated to run from April 20 to November 24, 2024. ...

2. US sanctions target Intellexa over cyber spyware

The United States has issued sanctions against Intellexa, linked to the black van, and other entities as part of cybersecurity principles, as revealed in a post on the U.S. Department of the Treasury's website. ...

3. Navigating Gaza, 'Cyprus Confidential,' and financial turbulence

Discussions on the regional and global implications of the war in Gaza, on tighter anti-money laundering rules in light of the “Cyprus confidential” investigation but also on the lack of adequate legislative follow-up to Parliament’s inquiry into the use of spyware, are on the agenda of the European Parliament session taking place this week in Strasbourg....

4. European journalists accuse EU leaders of invalidating media freedom

Draft legislation published by EU leaders that would allow national security agencies to spy on journalists has been condemned by media and civil society groups as dangerous and described by a leading MEP as “incomprehensible”....

5. EU parliament wants Cyprus to drop spy games

The European Parliament approved on Thursday a text including a series of recommendations to the EU institutions and to member states, including targeted recommendations on Cyprus regarding its reported role as an export hub for spyware ...

6. Frustrated PEGA member fears Cyprus role in Sudan

European Union lawmakers investigating the use of Pegasus spyware against opposition politicians and journalists on Tuesday raised deep concern about abuses in Hungary and Poland and lamented a lack of cooperation with their inquiry...

7. Cyprus urged to repeal spyware export licenses not in line with EU

Cyprus has played a major role as an export hub for spyware, and should repeal all export licences it has issued that are not in line with EU legislation, ...

8. Greece admits Predator sale to Sudan but denies implication

A private airplane that flew from Cyprus to Sudan last year had delivered the infamous Predator surveillance software, with the Greek government admitting the export but denying any involvement in the ongoing civil war there...

9. Australian government removes Chinese-made surveillance cameras

Australia's defense department will strip its buildings of Chinese-made security cameras to ensure they are "completely secure", the government said on Thursday....

10. US looking for wreckage of a possible Chinese spy balloon

US Navy divers are working to recover the wreckage of the Chinese surveillance balloon that was shot down off the coast of South Carolina....

11. Chinese spy balloon lingers over the US

A Chinese spy balloon has been flying over the United States for a couple of days, U.S. officials said on Thursday, in what would be a brazen act just days ahead of a planned trip to Beijing by U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken....

12. PEGA's amendment games

The debate on Cyprus will turn into a game of balances and... amendments in relation to the draft report of the European Parliament's Committee of Inquiry into Surveillance Software (PEGA), ...

13. Cypriot author claims police trying to ban his book on corruption

A Cypriot investigative journalist accused the police on Wednesday of trying to prevent him from publishing books he wrote about corruption in his country....

14. WhatsApp given green light to sue Pegasus spyware company

The US Supreme Court on Monday let Meta Platforms Inc’s WhatsApp pursue a lawsuit accusing Israel’s NSO Group of exploiting a bug in the WhatsApp messaging app to install spy software allowing the surveillance of 1,400 people, including journalists, human rights activists and dissidents....

15. Predator probe focuses on suspicious SMS from US

Two Greek prosecutors investigating all allegations of illegal electronic surveillance of dozens of individuals in Greece have submitted a request to US authorities for judicial assistance...

16. Athens offices of Predator spyware seller raided

The Athens offices of Intellexa, which sells the Predator spyware in Greece, and Krikel, an ICT and electronic security systems provider, were among six companies raided by police as part of the investigation into the wiretapping affair on Tuesday...

17. Gov't admits to allowing spyware exports

The Greek government has admitted that it gave an Athens-based company permits to export a phone hacking tool to Madagascar, a country with a history of cracking down on dissent....

18. Spyware and political games

The European Parliament's Committee of Inquiry's draft report on the use of spyware in the EU was lengthy and comprehensive, but in the case of Cyprus, a sizable portion of the information was a repetition of already well-known facts and concerns about the absence of the required institutional framework. ...

19. Report claims 3-4 companies produce spyware in Cyprus

Cyprus's parliament opened an inquiry on Wednesday into the development of spyware on the island, after a draft European Parliament committee investigation report said it was an important export hub for the surveillance industry....

20. Foreclosures on primary residences suspended until February 2023

The Association of Credit Acquisition Companies and Credit Facilities Managers (SEDP) announced on Thursday the suspension of foreclosures on the primary residences of vulnerable borrowers until February 2023. ...

21. Initial PEGA report - Cyprus is an appealing destination for spy goods

22. 9.5 million mobile phones tapped in Cyprus according to AKEL

AKEL has made serious allegations regarding the interception of mobile communications in Cyprus. During the presence of the PEGA Committee members in Parliament, ...

23. EP committee in Cyprus to investigate spyware claims

A delegation from the European Parliament’s committee of inquiry to investigate the use of Pegasus (PEGA) and equivalent surveillance spyware arrives in Cyprus on Tuesday afternoon, as part of a joint mission in Cyprus and Greece. PEGA gets a job in Cyprus - Why won't Drakou meet with the committee It will investigate complaints about the development and use of spyware on the spot...

24. Cypriot author talks illegal surveillance with PEGA

Cypriot author Makarios Drousiotis said on Wednesday that illegal surveillance was still taking place in the Republic of Cyprus, as European lawmakers were on the island for a second day of meetings to uncover any unlawful activity amid spying scandals...

25. Metsola: 'Europe's bloc is made stronger by the discovery of so much natural gas in your country'

In anticipation of Roberta Metsola's visit to Cyprus on September 9th, Kathimerini's George Kakouris sits down with the European Parliament President and gets her take on the Cyprus problem, recently discovered natural gas reserves and the issue behind Cyprus' "golden passport" scandal....

26. Cyprus government: No comment on passport audit report just yet

The Government will study the report released Monday by the Audit Office on passports and the Cyprus investment program that granted citizenship by investment, Spokesperson Marios Pelekanos said, following the Cabinet’s meeting which convened Monday at the presidential retreat in the Troodos mountains....

27. Cyprus still in the mix as EU probes Greek spyware

Cypriot Deputy Attorney General Savvas Angelides has fired back at allegations over a conflict of interest in an alleged cover-up involving Israeli-made malware, as Nicosia and other EU capitals have been feeling pressure to come clean following rumors of widespread unlawful surveillance...

28. Rumors of Pegasus purchase by Cyprus not put to rest

The possibility that NSO sold Pegasus to Cypriot authorities remained unanswered last week when a Cypriot MEP grilled the company’s general counsel, who stopped short of saying who actually bought it...

29. An EU-wide ban on 'golden passports' and the Ukrainian crisis on the agenda

The European Parliament is scheduled to have its plenary session this week from the 7th to the 10th of March in Strasbourg. On the agenda will be, most importantly, the Ukrainian issue as well as a discussion on an EU-wide ban on citizenship by investment schemes....

30. Dubai ruler must pay ex-wife $700M in divorce settlement

A British court on Tuesday ordered the ruler of Dubai to pay his ex-wife and their children close to 550 million pounds ($730 million), in one of the most expensive divorce settlements in British history....