The U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation confirmed it tested Israeli technology firm NSO Group's Pegasus spyware for potential use in criminal cases in 2019, Axios reports. The Department of Justice and FBI were determining if Pegasus could hack into Americans’ smartphones at the time of the testing. The spyware has been used to hack smartphones belonging to human rights activists, political dissidents and reporters around the world. An FBI spokesperson said the spyware was used in "product testing and evaluation only."