SAI Grantees Uncover New Spyware from Belarus

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) and RESIDENT.NGO have uncovered a previously unknown Belarusian spyware tool, ResidentBat, used by the Belarusian State Security Committee (KGB) to target journalists, media workers, and opposition figures. ResidentBat was found on an Android device belonging to a journalist following an interrogation by the KGB and is capable of accessing call logs, SMS and encrypted messages, microphone recordings, screen captures, and locally stored files after being physically installed when authorities had access to the phone. The discovery by RSF’s Digital Security Lab and RESIDENT.NGO shows this spyware has likely been in use since at least 2021 and signals a sustained campaign of digital repression; full details are available in the RSF report. RSF uncovers new spyware from Belarus (rsf.org)

Independent reporting in Die Zeit further confirms that the Belarusian secret service used sophisticated surveillance apps to fully monitor and potentially control smartphones of opposition and journalism targets, with analysis suggesting years-long use and risks extending to remote wiping and broad data access. The reporting highlights how physical access and sideloading techniques have been exploited, and notes calls for improved protections from platform providers against such intrusive state-level spyware. Belarussischer Geheimdienst spionierte Handys aus (zeit.de)