The Israeli Occupation’s Control Over Secret Internet Services: A Threat to Arab Dissidents’ Information

Advocates of freedom and those fleeing repressive regimes often resort to the use of secret internet and Virtual Private Network (VPN) technology to encrypt their personal data, protect their online identities, and secure privacy.

These tools also enable access to websites that are blocked by governments.

However, this freedom is now under threat due to the increasing control of Israeli companies over VPN providers, raising concerns that Israeli entities may potentially leak the data of Arab activists to their repressive governments.

These concerns are compounded by past instances of collaboration between the Israeli Occupation companies and these repressive regimes, where “Israel” has sold surveillance devices to target dissenters.

Israeli involvement in cybersecurity has faced accusations of engaging in malicious activities and continuously selling surveillance technologies to both Arab and Western systems for the purpose of espionage on dissidents.

Experts argue that the Israeli Occupation’s control over VPN providers, coupled with its extensive history of spying on these companies, poses significant risks to user privacy.

Taha al-Rawi, a specialist in the field, highlights these dangers in an article published on the Turkish TRT channel’s website on June 14, 2023.

VPN applications are gaining popularity amid increasing restrictions imposed by different regimes, allowing users to modify their IP addresses and create a private browsing experience on their smartphones and desktops. These applications also grant access to content that is not available in their regions by bypassing censorship.

However, technology experts warn that VPN applications have become one of the primary tools for spying on and stealing user data. Since data often passes through anonymous servers whose ownership is unknown, the possession of these tools by Israeli entities raises concerns about data security.

Cybersecurity specialist Majdi al-Qabalin states that some VPN applications steal user data and sell it to marketing companies due to the lack of control and data integrity.

 

Concerns About ‘Israel’

There are over 1,800 servers spread across more than 100 countries worldwide, including servers within “Israel.” These servers allow access to preferred websites and applications for anyone, regardless of geographic restrictions, censorship, or barriers.

However, the concern over Israeli companies’ control extends beyond the fear of the Israeli Occupation leaking data, particularly in its cooperation with repressive Arab regimes, to include worries about their involvement in espionage.

Israeli companies now provide individuals with IP addresses that make them appear as if they are in “Israel” or disguise their identities to appear in other countries, facilitating surveillance operations.

Internet platforms promote Israeli VPNs to hide individuals’ IP addresses and gain exclusive internet access.

Additionally, they claim that changing the IP address to other countries helps bypass restrictions, asserting that it is “one of the best options for free VPNs.”

The story of the Israeli Occupation’s infiltration into the realm of secret internet services began on September 13, 2021, when Reuters and Israeli media outlets revealed a “deal” in which an Israeli company acquired some prominent VPN sites.

According to Reuters and Israeli sources, the Israeli–British company Kape Technologies PLC, a provider of digital security software, acquired the site of ExpressVPN, one of the most widely used platforms by activists and dissidents to conceal their identities. The deal was valued at approximately one billion dollars.

The Israeli company claimed that it made the acquisition to establish what it described as “enhanced consumer privacy and security.”

In an attempt to reassure users of the popular identity-concealing and unblocking site, ExpressVPN, Kape stated that the aim of the acquisition was to expand its customer base to over six million, considering that the current number of users does not exceed three million.

Despite Kape’s claim that ExpressVPN will continue to operate independently, activists have raised concerns about security risks due to Israeli control over it.

 

Espionage on Arabs

The concern arises from a potential future alliance between providers of secret or virtual private network (VPN) services and Israeli companies selling surveillance technologies, collaborating to sell the data of Arab activists and dissidents to repressive regimes in the Gulf countries and Egypt.

Israeli companies have sold numerous surveillance programs to Arab states, and their use for tracking dissidents and activists has been uncovered.

Now, with activists resorting to hiding their identities through VPN technology, Israeli companies may also sell their data to repressive regimes.

Israeli websites promote the best Israeli privacy-browsing service providers, claiming to safeguard customer data and refrain from sharing it with any parties while offering enticing incentives to join. This raises suspicions.

On April 11, 2023, Canadian laboratory Citizen Lab revealed a new Israeli surveillance program called QuaDreams, which is similar to Pegasus.

According to Citizen Lab, the new program has been used to target journalists and opposition politicians in several countries, including Arab nations.

The program was developed by an unknown Israeli company called QuaDream Limited, founded by a former Israeli military official and former employees of NSO, the company behind Pegasus, possibly to evade the previous program’s tarnished reputation.

According to the laboratory, this surveillance program can record calls, capture external sounds, take photos from cameras, and search device files without the user’s knowledge.

It can also generate two-factor authentication codes, such as passwords and security tokens, to gain continuous access to the device owner’s cloud accounts.

Citizen Lab identified servers hosting this program in ten countries that received data from victims’ devices, including “Israel,” Singapore, Mexico, the United Arab Emirates, and Bulgaria.

The researchers at Citizen Lab stated that the company QuaDream marketed the surveillance software it produces to government clients in Singapore, Saudi Arabia, Mexico, Ghana, Indonesia, Morocco, and other countries.

According to the French news agency Agence France-Presse on April 12, 2023, the list of victims included journalists, opposition political figures, and a staff member of a non-governmental organization. However, their identities have not been disclosed at present for security reasons.

Once installed on mobile devices or computers, such software can access all digital and vital data, such as facial recognition, fingerprints, personal photos, email accounts, passwords, and more.

Therefore, experts argue that the Israeli Occupation’s extensive history of spying on these companies poses significant risks to user privacy.

 

Privacy at Risk?

According to a study conducted by EC-Council, a technology risk research institute based in New Mexico, published on April 14, 2023, people use VPN networks for a variety of reasons.

One of the primary reasons is privacy, as it remains a significant factor driving individuals to use these applications.

VPN networks establish encrypted connections that conceal users’ online activities from their Internet Service Providers (ISPs) and prying eyes.

According to a previous survey by ExpressVPN, which is now owned by “Israel,” 74% of respondents cited online privacy as the main reason for using a VPN.

The second reason is security. VPNs provide users with enhanced security features, protecting them from cyber threats such as hacking, phishing, and malware.

A study published by PCMag, a computer research magazine owned by Ziff Davis, found that 38% of participants used VPNs for security purposes.

The third reason for using VPN networks, according to the EC-Council study, is to access geographically restricted content.

Many individuals utilize VPNs to bypass government-imposed restrictions and access blocked websites.

For example, Egypt blocks over 500 websites, most of which publish reports critical of the authorities. Therefore, Egyptians resort to VPN applications to circumvent these blocks and access such websites.

On June 20, 2023, six human rights organizations issued a joint statement urging the lifting of the block on these restricted websites within Egypt, including newspapers, human rights organizations, and research centers.

If you are an activist, journalist, or a citizen seeking some freedom in browsing the web and evading censorship, and you use a virtual private network (VPN) application, you are among the 1.5 billion users worldwide who entrust their data and secrets to these networks, according to observers.