Loiseau’s spyware incident was first reported by Le Point. The subcommittee chair then sent an email on Wednesday, seen by POLITICO, that advised its members to take their phones to the institution’s IT service for a spyware check.
Loiseau was tired of hearing members of the European Parliament repeat how they were not a legitimate target for hacking because they wouldn’t have “anything interesting to say,” she told POLITICO. “They are sort of reluctant [to talk] about their privacy … They don’t want to have their phones checked. So that’s why I did something a little more formal,” she said.
This is not the first time Loiseau has checked her phone for spyware, but it is the first time a successful intrusion was detected. She has since changed her device.
One lawmaker on the committee said that members were waiting for Loiseau to announce a meeting of the leading members of political groups (coordinators) given the severity of the crisis.
Another lawmaker, a member of Parliament’s Greens group, said they would ask for a debate on the spyware incidents at the opening session of the upcoming plenary in Strasbourg next week.
The crisis surrounding the security and defense committee follows previous incidents with other European Parliament members targeted with spyware.
