Software linked to Israel running fake social media campaign in India

The team of Israel's spy firm is accused of interfering in the elections of more than 30 countries around the world. According to the report, the Israeli firm is running fake social media campaigns in many countries including India through a software. An international investigation by a journalist association including UK's "The Guardian" newspaper has made major revelations about the so-called "Team George". The Israeli firm's project is part of a wider investigation into the disinformation industry, coordinated by Forbidden Stories. Forbidden Stories is a non-profit organization from France. Its mission is to advance the work of journalists killed, threatened or imprisoned. Forbidden Stories was inspired by the work of 55-year-old journalist Gauri Lankesh, who was shot outside her Bengaluru home in 2017.

'The Guardian' found in its report that Gauri Lankesh was giving final touches to her article "In the Age of False News" a few hours before the murder. This article examines how so-called online fake factories are spreading misinformation in India. The last lines of the article were published after his death. In it, the late Indian journalist wrote: "I want to salute all those who expose fake news. I wish there were more of them." The undercover footage for Team George's latest investigation was filmed by three journalists who approached the unit as potential clients.

In more than six hours of secretly recorded meetings, Hanan and his team reportedly discussed how they could gather intelligence on rivals. In this, hacking techniques are used to access Gmail and Telegram accounts. The boss of "Team George" is Tal Hanan, a 50-year-old former Israeli Special Forces operative. He claims to specialize in 'treatment' of allegedly secure Telegram accounts, thousands of fake social media profiles and news stories.