Massive expose: Israeli firm ‘influenced’ polls in India, other nations; Congress demands probe

• ‘The Narendra Modi government is known to play with big data to their advantage’
• ‘This isn’t the first time that allegations of data theft have been made against the government’
• Congress leader Pawan Khera linked the issue with the recent controversy over the Adani group

The Congress on Thursday accused the Narendra Modi government of joining hands with the Israeli “Team Jorge” and demanded a probe into the report by a consortium of international journalists.

According to The Guardian report, a team of Israeli contractors have interfered with more than 30 elections around the world, including India, by using means such as hacking, sabotage, and automated disinformation online. According to the British daily, which is also part of the consortium, a so-called “Team Jorge” unit has been linked with allegedly offering a sophisticated software package named Advanced Impact Media Solutions (Aims) to commercial clients as one of its key services.

The consortium claimed that the “Team Jorge” led by Tal Hanan, a 50-year-old former Israeli special forces operative who works privately using the pseudonym “Jorge”, was behind “fake social media campaigns” in countries such as the UK, US, Canada, Germany, Switzerland, Mexico, Senegal, India, and the United Arab Emirates”.

There was no immediate reaction from the BJP. Tal Hanan has told the investigation that he denies “any wrongdoing”.

In a press conference on Thursday, the Congress accused the Modi government of joining hands with the “Team Jorge” and said it directly impacts the election process in the country.

Congress spokesperson Supriya Shrinate said the Israeli team is responsible to have spread fake news and disinformation on widely used platforms like Facebook, Instagram, Linkedin and Gmail and alleged the BJP’s IT cell has mirrored the modus operandi of “Jorge Team”, reported the Hindustan Times. She said: “This impacts India’s electorate process directly and there should be a probe.”

“This isn’t the first time that allegations of data theft have been made against the Modi government. One of the serious charges this government faces is data theft and manipulation to tamper with the electoral process,” added Shrinate, who is the Congress’s media face.

“This government is known to play with big data to their advantage,” Shrinate said.

She also accused Modi of having more than 60 per cent fake followers on social media platforms and claimed over 18,000 fake accounts on Twitter still amplify fabricated information for the BJP.

Congress leader Pawan Khera went ahead to link the issue with the recent controversy over the Adani group. He said: “How many companies of Adani gave money to Modi government? Where has he spent it? Pegasus or Jorge?” He said disinformation is strategically connected to the electoral process.

-INDIA NEWS STREAM