GoKawiilCitizen Lab finds mercenary spyware delivered via zero-click ads on iOS and Android
Citizen Lab researchers reported a campaign dubbed AdFection in which malicious ads containing zero-click exploits installed spyware on targeted phones without any user interaction. The group confirmed 45 infected devices at Al Jazeera during 2024 and 2025, and linked the ad delivery to Israeli company Discover-Tech, which brokers ad placements between advertisers and publishers.
GoKawiil's interpretation of the reporting above, not reported fact.
Because the attack requires no clicks and leaves no obvious trace, Citizen Lab says it could be undetectable without specialized forensic tools, making it a persistent risk for journalists and civil society groups who are frequent spyware targets. The researchers suggest the ad-tech ecosystem itself may be exploited as a channel for spyware deployment, which could implicate advertising intermediaries beyond the spyware makers themselves.
- Citizen Lab identified a zero-click spyware campaign called AdFection spread via targeted ads.
- At least 45 devices at Al Jazeera were infected in 2024-2025.
- Israeli ad broker Discover-Tech allegedly served as a bridge between advertisers and mercenary spyware operators.
Source: arstechnica.com, 2026-10-15
Published there as: “Targeted ads delivered 0-click exploits to install mercenary malware”
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