Spyware Accountability Mechanisms Framework
Commercial spyware tools, such as Pegasus, pose a significant challenge to free societies worldwide, as they threaten human rights defenders, advocates of free speech, and marginalized communities globally. On behalf of the Ford Foundation and Open Society Foundations, Freedman Consulting authored a report that outlines more than 50 specific levers that can be used to advance commercial spyware accountability. The mechanisms of change listed throughout this report include national and international action, investor and corporate engagement, strategic litigation, technical interventions, and media & education efforts. This report is intended to provide a shared basis for discussion and planning among relevant actors in the spyware accountability space.
The report draws on perspectives from researchers, advocates, commercial actors, funders, and others in the spyware accountability space. We are grateful to the Ford Foundation and Open Society Foundations for their support of this research and the resulting report.