Saudi Prince Reportedly Involved In Hacking Of Jeff Bezos Phone

Saudi Prince Mohammed bin Salman was behind the hacking of Amazon.com Inc. AMZN CEO Jeff Bezos’ phone in 2018, reported The Guardian, citing results of a new digital forensic analysis.

What Happened

A seemingly innocent WhatsApp message sent to Bezos from Mohammed bin Salman’s phone back in 2018 contained malware, which was later used to hack the Amazon CEO’s phone, said the analysis results.  

Saudi Arabia’s US embassy immediately denied the allegation against the Saudi crown prince.  

“Recent media reports that suggest the Kingdom is behind the hacking of Mr. Jeff Bezos' phone are absurd. We call for an investigation on these claims so that we can have all the facts out,” tweeted the Saudi embassy.  

Why It Matters

The new disclosure comes almost a year after Bezos announced divorce from his wife MacKenzie, after 25 years of marriage.

Not long after the announcement, the Amazon CEO wrote a blog post in February 2019, in which he publicly accused a tabloid newspaper called the National Enquirer of trying to blackmail him with private text messages and photos from his extramarital affair with former television anchor, Lauren Sanchez.

Later in March 2019, Gavin de Becker, a longtime security consultant for Bezos, said the Saudi Arabian government had gained access to Bezos’s phone before the Enquirer exposed the affair.

The Saudi Prince targeted Bezos because The Washington Post, which the Amazon CEO owns, covered the 2018 murder of its columnist and Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, said de Becker at the time.

Price Action

Shares of Amazon.com Inc. traded 1.46% higher and closed at $1,892.00 on Tuesday.

Photo Credit: public domain photo via Wikimedia