Phone spyware scandal in Greece moves to court as critics claim cover-up

It has become known as Watergate in Greece: Greek espionage and intelligence programs targeted mobile phones of government ministers, senior military officials, judges and journalists.

Prime Minister Kiriacos Mitsotakis described it as a scandal, but no government officials in court and critics accuse the government of trying to cover up the truth.

Instead, a low -link judge will hear on Wednesday the case against two Israelis and two Greeks, claiming to be involved in the marketing spy program known as Predator.

In the summer of 2022, the current president of the Socialist Party, Nikos Androlakis – then MEP – was informed by the European Union’s IT experts in the European Union that he had received a harmful text message from an unknown sender, containing a spy program.

Intellexa, predators spyware, which is marketed by the Israeli Intellexa company, can access the device, camera, and microphone-the transformation of a person’s phone against them.

Things escalated after Androcissus also discovered that he was following for national security reasons “by the National Intelligence Service in Greece (EYP).

Just one month after he took office in the summer of 2019, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis Eyp put directly under his supervision.

His government was suddenly conservative at the heart of the crisis. Eyp president, Panagiotis Kontoleon, resigned, as did the best assistant prime minister and his nephew, Grigoris Dimitriadis, who was the connection between EYP and the Prime Minister’s office.

Predator was used in attempts to establish at least 87 people, according to the Hellenic Data Protection Authority. Twenty -seven of those who were placed under surveillance were monitored simultaneously by EYP, including working ministers and senior military officers.

Despite the criticism that the joint goals made by EYP and Predator involved a joint monitoring strategy, the government insisted that this was coincidence and that no predatory law enforcement agency, whose use was illegal in Greece at that time. A new law passed in 2022 since then codified state security for monitoring programs under strict conditions.

However, the government did not answer the reason for spying the secret services to the Chief of the General Staff of the National Defense, and the Ventinance General Konstantinos Floros, and Costis Hatzakakis, then a member of the Council of Ministers and Deputy Prime Minister today.

In July 2024, a report issued by the Greek Supreme Court, which was seen by the British Broadcasting Corporation, concluded that there was no connection between the predator and government officials.

“There is a public prosecutor’s report and the answers are clear. Justice has spoken. There is no doubt about what he said,” government spokesman Pavlos Marinakis told reporters.

BBC has repeatedly called Mr. Marinakis to comment on this, but at the time of publication he did not receive a response.

On Wednesday, the four ordinary individuals who obtain a trial in Athens on Wednesday are facing misdemeanor accusations – claiming to be linked to a predator marketing. It is said that two of the defendants have relations with state officials, but they have not been seriously investigated.

Thanasis Koukakis, a financial reporter who achieves corruption, and between the goals of dual monitoring – by Predator and Secret Services “for national security reasons” for national security reasons “for national security reasons” for national security reasons “for national security reasons”, for national security reasons “, for national security reasons”: “What started as a scandal Political has now evolved into an institutional scandal, the decline of both the judiciary and the independent authorities.

Elisa Trentfilo, a journalist in the interior story, has reported the scandal from its inception.

“If someone does not follow the eavesdropping scandal, they believe that four individuals, with their own initiative and for their own personal reasons, took advantage of the phones of 87 people in Greece, using advanced spy programs that are particularly marketed for government intelligence services and law enforcement authorities around the world.”

She said: “No minister, judge, or military officer has filed a complaint about targeting the predator so far. None of them was called to testify as a witness.”

After the outbreak of the scandal, the Greek government submitted a new law on the company of communications.

There is now more guarantees of law enforcement authorities, but at the same time the new legislation has been criticized because it effectively deprives citizens of the right to identify whether they were previously monitored.

In addition, the Greek government has received criticism for its lack of willingness to find out who was spying on its ministers and members of the army – the criticism that was not proven until after the authorities raided Intellexa offices in Athens, months after the outbreak of the eavesdropping scandal. They left empty -handed.

Christos Ramos, the former former judge and head of the Hellenistic Authority for Communications and Privacy Security (ADAE) at a time when the scandal erupted was a major figure in revealing the facts behind eavesdropping. It was not an easy task and faced many obstacles on the road.

Ramos told the BBC newspaper: “In Greece, the political system cannot bear the independent authorities, the so -called checks and balances of power. “I was subjected to personal attacks. It was an open war.”

She received the international attention and scrutiny scandal because one of the first victims, Nikos Androcis was MEP. The European Parliament has established a special committee to investigate the use of PEGASUS and the equal surveillance spy programs (PEGA).

The introduction told Mep Sophie in T Veld, BBC that the Greek government made “every possible attempt to hide the truth. They refused, at every turn, cooperation.”

“The complete thing for spyware is not something you can see in isolation. It does not happen in a vacuum. It is used to silence critical sounds. It is used to strangle the scrutiny. But, the damage happened; it had a chilling effect.

“I was now returning from coffee with a friend who was also looking for spyware and said:” I cannot make sure that my phone is safe from the Greek government. ” – Literally.”