Disgruntled ex-employee tried to sell Israeli cyber weapon on the dark web

Pegasus, spyware designed to hack iOS Apple's operating system, is capable of gathering texts and passwords, tracking calls, finding locations and infiltrating apps. It can wipe all the information on a cell phone and breach encrypted communications.

The sophisticated spyware was apparently available on the dark web for $50 million dollars—not exactly cheap, but also not prohibitively expensive for governments eager to spy on opponents and activists.

Axios reports that a disgruntled former employee of NSO group, the Israeli company that developed the spyware, stole Pegasus and tried to sell it on the dark web after he was fired.

The 38-year-old was able to download the program after Googling how to avoid the company's anti-theft system.