Concerns raised over Israel’s vulnerability to foreign cyber attack

As Israel prepares to hold a national election next week, experts say it is vulnerable to the kind of foreign hacks and cyber campaigns that have disrupted the political process in other countries.

Prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu says there is “no country better prepared” to combat election interference but despite Israel’s thriving tech sector and vaunted security capabilities, experts say its laws are outdated and that Netanyahu’s government hasn’t made cyber threats a priority.

Campaigning had just started to ramp up in January when the director of the Shin Bet, Israel’s internal security agency, told a closed audience that a world power had tried to disrupt the vote to be held on 9 April.

Suspicion fell on Russian operatives, now infamous for their alleged cyber meddling in America’s 2016 presidential race and the Brexit referendum. Soon after came news that Iranian agents had hacked the mobile phone of Benny Gantz, a former general who is the main challenger to Mr Netanyahu. Although the breach occurred months before Mr Gantz joined the race, the scandal threatened to derail his campaign, which is largely based on his security credentials.

Boaz Dolev, chief executive of cyber security firm Clearsky, said Iran has honed its phone-hacking skills over the past five years and targeted nearly all of Israel’s senior army officials. He said Israel is also a target for hackers who support the Palestinianled boycott movement, and who launch an annual wave of attacks that this year will coincide with the vote.

But many experts say the greatest threat comes from within. Karine Nahon, president of the Israel Internet Association, said the main danger comes from Israeli politicians and their supporters spreading disinformation on social media. She said there is little in the way of legislation to prevent such activities as laws on political propaganda were written before the digital age and are poorly enforced.

On Monday, an Israeli group known as the Big Bots Project revealed what it said was a sprawling network of fake and automated social media accounts, some operated by real people, that circulated posts supporting Mr Netanyahu and smearing his opponents, particularly Mr Gantz.

Noam Rotem, one of the researchers, said the legion of accounts pumping fake news into democratic debate poses “the biggest and most sophisticated threat we’ve seen yet” to Israel’s electoral integrity.

The researchers said they found no direct link to Mr Netanyahu or his Likud party. But Mr Netanyahu’s son Yair, who has run into trouble in the past for controversial social media activity, frequently likes posts by the network’s accounts.