Israeli surveillance company NSO is being sued by messaging service provider WhatsApp.
WhatsApp claims that NSO breached the law by offering assistance to scores of governments across the world to hack into the mobile devices of over 100 people.
The suit filed against NSO opens a new legal front-line in the battle to check the underworld of global surveillance.
In its legal suit, WhatsApp alleges that the Israeli surveillance company provided governments with malicious software delivered through seemingly harmless video calls.
"This is the first time that an encrypted messaging provider is taking legal action against a private entity that has carried out this type of attack against its users,” a WhatsApp spokesman said.
“In our complaint, we explain how NSO carried out this attack, including acknowledgement from an NSO employee that our steps to remediate the attack were effective," he added.
The malware, according to BBC, is alleged to have powerful capabilities including the ability to steal photos, intercepting communications and activating cameras and microphones without the knowledge mobile device owners.
Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi's movements are said to have been tracked using a surveillance tool developed by NSO called Pegasus.
Mr Khashoggji was murdered in a Saudi consulate sometime this year and his body dismembered.
NSO responded to the devastating allegations carried in the WhatsApp in a statement to newsrooms, saying that it strongly rejected the allegations.
“In the strongest possible terms, we dispute today’s allegations and will vigorously fight them,” NSO said.
The surveillance company said that the purpose of its surveillance tools was to help fight crime and terrorism and that any use out of that was misused.
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