New Delhi: The Pegasus panel in a report submitted in the Supreme Court said there was no conclusive evidence to show the presence of Pegasus spyware infected 29 phones scanned by it.

He said the committee recommended the amendment to laws on surveillance

Chief Justice NV Ramana read the report of the committee in the open court on Thursday.

He said the committee recommended the amendment to laws on surveillance.

The CJI said the committee in its report mentioned that 29 phones were submitted to the Pegasus panel, however Pegasus spyware was not found. The report added that in five phones some other malware was detected, ‘but it cannot be concluded that it was Pegasus’.

The panel headed by retired Supreme Court judge RV Raveendran had submitted its report in the apex court last month.
The panel said the government did not fully cooperate while examining the phone for the malware.

The report consisted of three parts: report of the technical committee, digital images of phones examined for infection due to spyware, and the report of overseeing judge Justice Raveendran.

The report suggested that a country’s cyber security needs to be enhanced, and while protecting privacy of the citizens it is necessary to ensure that no unauthorised surveillance is allowed.

The report pointed out that there are certain malwares which could be misused, they cause concerns to the security, and also violate the privacy of citizens.

The panel suggested that some mechanism should be put in place to check illegal surveillance, and the private firms involved in surveillance should be prosecuted.

The top court pointed out that details of the report may not be made public.