"Israeli spyware maker sentenced to 8 years in Greece’s Predator case" 26 February 2026

Greek court convicts 4, including Intellexa founder Tal Dilian, over surveillance of politicians and journalists in ‘Greek Watergate’

...The case involved the illegal use of Predator software to target the phones of more than 90 politicians, journalists, business leaders and senior military officials...

...Predator is sophisticated software that makes it possible to infiltrate mobile phones, access messages and photos, and even remotely activate the microphone and camera. The spyware, which has been used in dozens of countries, has enabled unauthorized data extraction, geolocation tracking, and access to personal information on compromised devices...

...The defendants include Tal Dilian, a former Israeli soldier and founder of Intellexa, a company that specialized in supplying spyware and marketed the Predator software in Greece.

Intellexa was sanctioned by the US in 2024 under then-president Joe Biden, marking the first time that the Treasury Department sanctioned people or entities for the misuse of spyware. His successor, Donald Trump, dropped the sanctions the following year...

...The defendants, who were not present in court, were found guilty of “breaching the confidentiality of telephone communications,” according to the judge. They were also found guilty of “tampering with a personal-data filing system… on a repeated basis,” as well as of “illegal access to an information system or data,” the judge said...

...According to the Greek Authority for Communication Security and Privacy watchdog (ADAE), the spyware was used against more than 90 people...

...Dilian has previously denied any involvement or wrongdoing in the Greek case...