Redazione RHC : 12 September 2025 07:51
Two Kenyan documentary filmmakers were placed under surveillance by security services for their work on a film about youth protests. Computer forensics researchers say their phones were infected with FlexiSPY spyware while they were in police custody.
Brian Adagala and Nicholas Wambugu were arrested on May 2nd on charges of spreading false information but were released the next day. However, their mobile devices remained in the possession of authorities and were only returned on July 10th. According to lawyer Jan Mutiso, it was during this time that the surveillance program was installed on the devices.
The analysis was conducted by specialists from Citizen Lab, who confirmed the infection. It should be noted that FlexiSPY is available on the commercial market and is easier to detect than the expensive tools used by governments. However, the program is comparable in terms of capabilities: it can intercept calls, track location, activate a microphone for eavesdropping, and copy photos, emails, and correspondence.
The developers of FlexiSPY advertise it as a tool that allows parents and employers to “know everything” about a device owner’s activities. However, the product itself has already been the subject of significant investigations. Specifically, it was through FlexiSPY that Mexican drug lord Joaquin Guzman, known as El Chapo, spied on his girlfriends, and correspondence via the app later helped the FBI build a case against him.
Adagala and Wambugu have never been charged with any crime, but lawyers and human rights activists view their arrest and the subsequent interference with their personal devices as a pressure on free speech. Their film, “The People Shall,” chronicles the struggle of young Kenyans for democratic change, which clearly hasn’t gone down well with the authorities, amid growing scrutiny of the opposition and protests.
The Kenyan Embassy declined to immediately comment on the experts’ findings. Meanwhile, the filmmakers themselves call what’s happening absurd: the state, they say, is using tools previously used by criminal bosses, only now it’s using them against journalists and filmmakers.
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