Mythical Beasts and Where to Find Them

Despite its contribution to human rights harms and national security risks, the proliferation of spyware remains rife. A significant channel for this proliferation is sale through a global market, of which most public information is known about only a handful of vendors. While some of these entities have achieved infamy, like NSO Group and the Intellexa Consortium, most others have largely flown under the radar.

The Mythical Beasts project addresses this meaningful gap in contemporary public analysis on spyware proliferation, pulling back the curtain on the connections between 435 entities across forty-two countries in the global spyware market. These vendors exist in a web of relationships with investors, holding companies, partners, and individuals often domiciled in different jurisdictions.