India clears Israeli firm Cellebrite to supply phone-hacking tools to government agencies

India has exempted Israeli surveillance company Cellebrite from domestic procurement rules, allowing government agencies to buy its phone-extraction and hacking tools. An investigation by the Internet Freedom Foundation found that Home Minister Amit Shah approved a waiver for the National Investigation Agency, raising concerns about privacy and oversight.

The waiver clears the way to purchase at least 422 foreign forensic products, including Cellebrite technology that can extract data from seized devices. Recovered login tokens may also enable access to more than 100 cloud services, including Instagram, X and Tinder. Digital-rights experts say India’s laws provide inadequate safeguards against excessive monitoring.