Cellebrite cut off Serbia citing abuse of its phone unlocking tools. Why not others?

Cellebrite, a prominent developer of phone hacking tools, made headlines last year when it halted its business dealings with the Serbian police. This decision followed accusations from human rights groups that the Serbian authorities had utilized its technology to access the personal devices of a journalist and an activist, potentially implanting spyware in the process. This move was seen as a rare instance of the company taking a stand against the misuse of its products, inspired by a technical report from Amnesty International. However, recent allegations involving similar abuses in Jordan and Kenya have prompted a different response from Cellebrite. Instead of investigating these claims, the company has dismissed them outright, raising questions about its commitment to ethical practices. A new report from researchers at The University of Toronto’s Citizen Lab has implicated the Kenyan government in using Cellebrite’s technology to unlock the phone of activist Boniface Mwangi while he was detained. Earlier, a separate Citizen Lab investigation accused the Jordanian government of accessing the devices of local activists and protesters using Cellebrite’s tools. Both reports identified traces of specific applications associated with Cellebrite on the targeted phones, suggesting a strong likelihood of misuse. Victor Cooper, a spokesperson for Cellebrite, emphasized that the company does not engage with speculation and urged those with evidence-based concerns to come forward. When questioned about the disparity in their responses to the Serbia case compared to the allegations in Kenya and Jordan, Cooper stated that the situations were not comparable and highlighted that high confidence findings do not equate to direct evidence. Despite repeated inquiries, Cooper did not clarify whether Cellebrite would undertake an investigation into the recent allegations from Citizen Lab. In its previous interactions with Citizen Lab, Cellebrite had acknowledged inquiries but often refrained from providing detailed responses regarding its clients and any potential investigations. Citizen Lab's researchers have called on Cellebrite to disclose the criteria it uses to vet sales to authorities in Kenya and to reveal how many licenses have been revoked due to human rights violations. They argue that if Cellebrite is serious about its commitment to responsible practices, it should have no issue making this information public. Previously, Cellebrite has severed ties with law enforcement agencies in countries such as Bangladesh, Myanmar, Russia, and Belarus due to documented abuses of its technology. The company also ceased operations in Hong Kong and China following U.S. regulations designed to limit the export of sensitive technologies to these regions, where local activists raised concerns about the use of Cellebrite’s tools to unlock devices belonging to protesters.