The United States has added Israeli spyware firm NSO Group to its economic blacklist for acting “contrary to the foreign policy and national security interests of the US.”

The US Department of Commerce said Wednesday that NSO Group was placed on the so-called entity list based on evidence that the Israeli firm sold spyware to foreign governments that “used these tools to maliciously target government officials, journalists, businesspeople, activists, academics, and embassy workers.” 

Three other companies — Israel’s Candiru, Russia’s Positive Technologies and Singapore’s Computer Security Initiative Consultancy PTE — were also added Wednesday to the list, which prohibits US companies from exporting certain technologies to the listed entities unless they obtain a government license. 

“Today’s action is a part of the Biden-Harris Administration’s efforts to put human rights at the center of US foreign policy,” the Commerce Department said in a statement. “This effort is aimed at improving citizens’ digital security, combating cyber threats, and mitigating unlawful surveillance.”