Company halts use of digital forensic tool in Serbia following misuse allegations News
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Company halts use of digital forensic tool in Serbia following misuse allegations

Amnesty International on Wednesday welcomed the discontinuation of digital forensic equipment for some customers in Serbia. The move followed Amnesty International’s allegations that the technology was being misused against journalists and activists.

Amnesty International says that the announcement reinforces its findings that “Serbian police and intelligence routinely misused Cellebrite’s digital forensic equipment outside legally sanctioned processes to target civil society activists and independent journalists critical of the government”. The human rights organization made clear that this response is a critical first step in the right direction, urging the government to conduct its own investigations, provide accountability and justice to victims, and instate safeguards. It also called on Cellebrite to enhance its due diligence processes to prevent future human rights abuses facilitated through its products.

Amnesty International investigated the use of Cellebrite’s advanced phone spyware for law enforcement use in a report published in December 2024. It said that the Serbian police and Security Information Agency “used a bespoke Android spyware system” called NoviSpy to infect devices of individuals “during periods of detention or police interviews.” Alarmingly, it highlighted how activists making complaints to the police tended to be the subject of the surveillance. The report says this use of technology violates free speech and human rights. Freedom of expression is a fundamental human right, protected under Article 19(2) of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR).

Cellebrite, which is based in Israel, responded by highlighting its commitment to justice, and that its investigative technology serves to “support forensically sound, lawfully sanctioned investigations”. It emphasized that its product is not “spyware, surveillance or any other type of offensive cyber activity.” Cellebrite announced that it investigated the allegations made by Amnesty International’s report, and will no longer allow the use of its products by certain customers in Serbia.

Serbia is currently facing political unrest, driven by anti-corruption protests since 2024. Protesters have called for the resignation and arrest of government officials, initially sparked by a fatal railway station collapse. In January, student protesters gathered before the Serbian Supreme Court to oppose civil rights violations.

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