A clandestine social media election manipulation company in Israel was used to influence dozens of elections worldwide, mainly in Africa but elsewhere, such as Mexico, Spain, South America, and the United States, a group of investigative journalists has revealed.
The company, without legal existence, called “Team Jorge” by journalists, following the pseudonym of one of its managers, Tal Hanan, is composed of former members of the Israeli security services, according to information released on Wednesday (15) by the French organization Forbidden Stories, which brings together journalists from 30 vehicles, including Le Monde, Der Spiegel, and El Pais.
Three journalists from the group pretended to be potential clients to collect information over several months on “Team Jorge.”
The structure claims to have “acted in 33 election campaigns at the presidential level,” it told its fake clients, according to Radio France, where one of the undercover reporters works.
Of the 33 election campaigns, reported another employee heard by the journalists, “two thirds of them took place in Anglophone and Francophone Africa, 27 were successful.”
In Mexico, the company would have acted on behalf of Tomás Zerón, a former government official investigated for the disappearance of 43 students in 2014, the organization said.
In Spain, “Team Jorge” is said to have influenced the referendum, not recognized by the Spanish government, organized by the Catalan separatists in 2014, according to Radio France.
Subsequently, Tal Hanan was sought by journalists but denied any wrongdoing.
With information from Revista Oeste