Spyware Regulation and Proprietary Technology Ownership: Studying Legal Gaps in Cyber Governance Ethics

ABSTRACT
The way modern technologies have evolved over time has significantly changed surveillance practices. The deployment of sophisticated spyware has enabled the government and private entities to monitor the communications and digital activities of the people. The use of spyware by the state is often justified on the grounds of national security, law enforcement, and counter-terrorism, whereas technology is private property; companies that develop such spyware tools keep control over it. The increasing commercialisation and proprietary ownership of such tools raise serious legal and ethical concerns, which are often overlooked. There exists a conflict between the protection of intellectual property rights of technology developers and the safeguarding of fundamental rights such as privacy, data protection and state responsibility.
This paper examines key legal gaps that exist in cyber governance frameworks and challenges posed by spyware and proprietary technology ownership. It explores how legal ambiguities are exploited by the entities under the cover of Intellectual Property (IP) and trade secrets to evade accountability, transparency and state responsibility, arguing for better regulatory oversight and clearer accountability standards for addressing cross-border cyber surveillance and development of comprehensive norms that ensure ethical and responsible governance of spyware technologies.