US defence company L3Harris is in talks to buy the hacking technology behind Pegasus, the military-grade spyware developed by Israel’s NSO Group, a high-stakes manoeuvre that would place in American hands a tool that Washington has condemned for enabling transnational repression.

Under the proposal, L3Harris, a top-10 US defence contractor, would acquire the code behind Pegasus as well as NSO’s engineers, two people with knowledge of the situation said. To do so would require the approval of the Israeli government, which has had close ties with NSO for years and has used the company’s spyware as a diplomatic calling card.

However, the people cautioned that talks are preliminary, and there are big hurdles to clear before any deal could be agreed.