Keypoints:
- Activist alleges spyware installed after 2025 arrest
- Citizen Lab links surveillance tool to Cellebrite
- Concerns grow over monitoring of government critics
KENYAN activist Boniface Mwangi has said he fears for his life after researchers concluded that spyware was allegedly installed on his mobile phone following his arrest last year, intensifying scrutiny over digital surveillance and civil liberties in Kenya.
Mwangi, a prominent government critic and former photojournalist, told AFP on Wednesday that he now lives with ‘life-threatening concerns’ after investigators determined authorities gained extensive access to his personal data during a police operation in July 2025.
Police officers had raided his home and office during the operation, confiscating mobile phones and computer hard drives while accusing him of ‘facilitation of terrorist acts’, allegations he has strongly denied.
Citizen Lab uncovers alleged phone intrusion
The claims follow a report released Tuesday by Citizen Lab, a digital rights research group based at the University of Toronto in Canada. According to the findings, forensic analysis indicated that software developed by Israeli digital intelligence firm Cellebrite had been installed on Mwangi’s device without his consent.
Cellebrite technology is widely used by law enforcement agencies worldwide to unlock smartphones and extract digital evidence. However, human rights organisations have warned that such tools risk being misused against journalists, activists and political opponents if oversight mechanisms are weak.
Citizen Lab researchers said Kenyan authorities were able to access ‘messages, private files, personal documents, financial information, passwords, and other sensitive data’ stored on Mwangi’s phone.
Amnesty International has previously raised concerns about surveillance technologies being deployed against civil society actors in several countries, including Kenya.
Activist says surveillance endangers inner circle
Speaking to AFP, Mwangi described the discovery as deeply unsettling, saying the alleged monitoring exposed both him and people close to him to potential danger.
‘I feel violated,’ he said. ‘Now the government has an overview of who is in my inner circle, and I fear for their safety too.’
Mwangi added that harassment against him appeared to intensify after he announced plans to run for Kenya’s presidency in 2027.
‘The level of targeted harassment and violations has increased since I announced I’m running for president,’ he told AFP.
He has been a leading voice in protests against President William Ruto’s government, particularly demonstrations condemning alleged extrajudicial killings and police conduct.
Lingering tensions after 2024 protests
The allegations come against the backdrop of mass anti-government protests in 2024, after which rights organisations documented cases of abductions and enforced disappearances involving government critics.
Authorities promised investigations into those incidents but have yet to publish official findings.
Mwangi said the broader political climate heightened his fears, warning that surveillance could be used to intimidate opposition figures ahead of future elections.
‘I feel I could be a target for elimination,’ he said.
AFP reported that Kenyan police were contacted for comment but had not responded at the time of publication.
Legal challenge planned
Mwangi, who has faced several arrests during his activism career, said he intends to use Citizen Lab’s findings in court as part of his defence against charges arising from last year’s arrest.
He also plans to seek judicial orders preventing authorities from releasing personal material allegedly obtained from his device.
‘We will ask the court to order the government not to leak the contents of my phone online, especially my family pictures,’ he said.
The controversy follows a separate Citizen Lab investigation last year which found spyware had allegedly been installed on the devices of four Kenyan filmmakers arrested over links to a BBC documentary examining alleged security-service killings during the 2024 protests.
Human rights advocates say the latest revelations are likely to renew debate over how surveillance technologies are regulated and deployed in Kenya, particularly when used against political activists and civil society figures.
