• Around 200 users were tricked into installing a fake WhatsApp app
• The campaign was carried out by an Italian cyber-surveillance firm

The popular messaging service WhatsApp has warned of a cyber-espionage campaign that targeted users in Italy, where an Italian surveillance company tricked around 200 people into downloading a fake version of the app designed to spy on their phones.

WhatsApp, owned by Meta, said the campaign was executed by ASIGINT, a subsidiary of SIO in northern Italy, and described it as "highly targeted," relying on deception to get users to install a "malicious program impersonating WhatsApp."

The company added that most of the victims were based in Italy, without providing further details.

SIO’s website highlights its “high-performance, field-tested intelligence solutions” and notes partnerships with law enforcement, governments, police, and intelligence agencies. The company did not immediately respond to requests for comment, and Italy’s interior ministry referred inquiries to the police, who also had not responded.

This is the second time in 15 months that Meta has publicly disrupted spyware operations in Italy, which is still dealing with the aftermath of a surveillance operation exposed in early 2025 using software from the U.S.-based firm Paragon, which subsequently ended its partnership with Italy.