Top court: OK if nation uses spyware for security

However, use against individuals needs to be examined, it said

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The Supreme Court of India said yesterday that a country possessing spyware for security purposes is not wrong, but if it is used against individuals, the matter will be examined.

A bench of Justices Surya Kant and N. Kotiswar Singh remarked, "What's wrong if a country is using spyware? Having spyware is not wrong; it is the question of whom it is being used against. You cannot compromise the security of the nation."

The court's remarks came as senior advocate Dinesh Dwivedi, appearing for some petitioners, argued that the core issue in the case was whether the government had used Pegasus spyware and whether it was being misused.