Greek Spyware Scandal Heads to Court Amid Cover-Up Allegations

Dubbed Greece’s Watergate, a surveillance ungraded involving spyware and the Greek quality work targeting politicians, subject officers, judges, and journalists is present successful court. Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis has labeled it a scandal, but nary authorities officials look charges, fueling accusations of a cover-up.

On Wednesday, a low-ranking justice volition perceive a lawsuit against 2 Israelis and 2 Greeks allegedly linked to selling Predator, a spyware developed by Athens-based Israeli steadfast Intellexa. Predator tin entree a device’s messages, camera, and microphone, turning phones into surveillance tools.

In 2022, Nikos Androulakis, past an MEP and present PASOK enactment leader, was alerted by EU Parliament IT experts astir a malicious substance containing Predator. He besides learned Greece’s National Intelligence Service (EYP) had tracked him for “national information reasons.” Mitsotakis, who took nonstop power of EYP successful 2019, faced a crisis. EYP caput Panagiotis Kontoleon and Mitsotakis’ nephew, Grigoris Dimitriadis, resigned.

The Hellenic Data Protection Authority recovered Predator targeted astatine slightest 87 people, 27 of whom were besides monitored by EYP, including ministers and elder subject figures similar Lieutenant General Konstantinos Floros and Kostis Hatzidakis, present vice president of the government. The authorities denied immoderate nexus betwixt EYP and Predator, calling it a coincidence. While Predator’s usage was amerciable successful Greece astatine the time, a 2022 instrumentality present permits authorities surveillance nether sotrict conditions.

A 2024 Greek Supreme Court report, seen by the BBC, recovered “no connection” betwixt Predator and authorities officials. Government spokesperson Pavlos Marinakis called the substance closed, but critics disagree. The BBC sought remark from Marinakis without response.

The 4 individuals connected proceedings look misdemeanor charges tied to Predator’s marketing. Critics, including writer Thanasis Koukakis, who was besides targeted, telephone it an “institutional scandal” tainting the judiciary. Eliza Trintafyllou of Inside Story noted the implausibility of 4 individuals independently targeting 87 salient figures with spyware typically sold to authorities agencies. No ministers, judges, oregon officers person filed complaints oregon testified.

A caller instrumentality connected communications confidentiality introduced post-scandal has been criticized for limiting citizens’ rights to cognize if they were surveilled. Authorities raided Intellexa’s Athens offices months aft the ungraded broke but recovered nothing. Christos Rammos, erstwhile caput of the Hellenic Authority for Communication Security and Privacy, faced obstacles investigating the case, describing it arsenic a “traumatic acquisition for Greek democracy.”

Androulakis

The ungraded drew planetary scrutiny, particularly since Androulakis was an MEP. A European Parliament committee (PEGA) investigated, with erstwhile MEP Sophie successful ‘t Veld accusing the Greek authorities of concealing the information and stifling captious voices. She noted a “chilling effect,” with fears of ongoing surveillance persisting.