Turkish Hackers Publicize Call with Israeli Defense Minister in a Personal Cyber-Attack
In a brazen act of cyber-warfare, Turkish hackers obtained and publicized the cell phone number of Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz, sharing a screenshot from a video call with him after he accidentally answered.
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz has become the latest target in a series of cyber-attacks on Israeli officials. In a bold personal attack, Turkish activists found the minister's personal cell phone number, initiated a video call, and subsequently published a screenshot of the brief interaction. The minister stated he answered the call by mistake and immediately hung up, but the hackers managed to capture a screenshot of his face and circulate it widely online. As a result of the incident, the minister's phone number has been disconnected.
The incident is believed to be linked to a highly publicized tweet from last August, when Katz, then serving as Foreign Minister, posted a scathing message in Turkish on social media sharply condemning the conduct of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. The post generated tens of millions of views and created a firestorm in Turkish media. One of the hackers in the video call reportedly managed to curse at the minister before the call was cut short.
This personal attack on a high-ranking official is part of a larger pattern of cyber-threats facing Israel. For instance, a cyber company recently exposed a sophisticated cyber-attack originating from Iran that penetrated the diplomatic efforts related to ceasefire negotiations in Cairo. The Iranian hackers reportedly infiltrated an employee's email account at the Omani embassy in Paris and used it to send seemingly harmless, but malicious, documents to Egyptian, American, and Qatari mediators. The goal of the operation was to undermine diplomatic trust and disrupt the talks.
In a separate incident from last February, an Iranian-affiliated hacker group claimed to have breached Israeli police systems, allegedly stealing 2.1 terabytes of sensitive information. The group, known as "Handala," claimed to have obtained classified investigation files, lists of sex offenders, psychological and medical profiles of security personnel, weapon licenses, and personal photos of police officers. The group published some of the alleged stolen data on the darknet and threatened to release more.