Israeli company manipulates elections worldwide for money – this is how it works If Apple & Co. become banks – these are the new risks in the financial system

According to investigative journalists, an Israeli company has rigged global elections for money. According to international research, which also involved “Spiegel”, “Zeit” and ZDF, the so-called “Team Jorge” has clients from business and politics. According to research by the investigative editor Forbidden Stories, the former military and agents use fake news and hacking methods to achieve their goals. The reports are based on six hours of secretly recorded conversations in which company manager Tal Hanan and his team present their service.

The team has so far intervened in 33 national election campaigns and votes, including in Kenya and Nigeria. In the recording, Tal Hanan can be heard saying that 27 of the missions were successful. For social media manipulation, the team has developed its own platform called Aims, which can be used to create verified user accounts. However, not all claims could be independently verified, it said.

According to reporters, the company is based in the Israeli city of Modiin, about halfway between Tel Aviv and Jerusalem. The team controls an “army” of more than 30,000 bots, the British “Guardian” reports Wednesday. These are social media profiles that are not endorsed by real people.

These are very cleverly designed and are displayed simultaneously on different platforms such as Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. According to the team, they are also capable of hacking into Telegram and Gmail. Smear campaigns and stolen information are used in particular to influence public opinion.

Hanan charges between $400,000 and $600,000 per month for his services. The Israeli businessman reportedly denied any wrongdoing. The German press agency in Tel Aviv has also requested a response. (aeg/sda/dpa)