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Israeli foreign intelligence agency Mossad has reportedly been implicated in an espionage scandal targeting Italian prime minister and senior officials, Yedioth Ahronoth reported yesterday.

According to the paper, Mossad has been involved in deals with the Milan-based private investigation firm which is made up of current and former senior members of the security services and who have stolen personal information on politicians, including Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and public figures, to be used for extortion.

The paper said at least four people are under arrest and dozens more under investigation, adding that cyber security experts and hackers may have breached the servers of Italy’s Interior Ministry.

Italian media outlets described the case as a “conspiracy of the highest level that involves members of the mafia and officials in the intelligence services, along with foreign intelligence services including the Mossad.”

Meloni described the plot as “unacceptable” and a “threat to democracy.”

https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20241 ... italy/amp/

Italian intelligence firm Equalize, which allegedly hacked information on thousands of people including politicians, entrepreneurs, athletes and even musicians, is accused of working for Israeli intelligence and the Vatican, police wiretaps leaked to Italian media show.

Members of the hacking network, including Nunzio Samuele Calamucci — the man prosecutors accuse of orchestrating the scheme — met with two Israeli agents at the firm's office in Milan in February 2023 to discuss a task worth 1 million euro, according to the leaked wiretaps.

The job was a cyber operation against Russian targets, including President Vladimir Putin's unidentified "right-hand man," and unearthing the financial trail leading from the bank accounts of wealthy figures to the Russian mercenary group Wagner. The information was then supposed to be passed on to the Vatican.

It's unclear from the leaked documents why Israeli intelligence and the Vatican were involved with the controversial Milan firm and what their reasons were for soliciting information on Russian targets, but their presence in the dossier has dramatically expanded the scope of Italy's sprawling investigation.
https://www.politico.eu/article/vatican ... -equalize/