The case caps a six-year battle between the social media giant and the surveillance firm, casting an unusual amount of light on the spyware industry.

An eight-person jury granted Meta $444,719 in compensatory damages to cover the costs of addressing the breach, plus an additional $167.25 million in punitive damages intended to discourage similar future actions by NSO, according to a court filing with the US District Court for the Northn District of California.

The five-year legal battle between the Meta-owned company and the most notorious spyware maker in the world ends with a huge win for WhatsApp.