Israeli tech firm accused of interfering in Scottish election

An Israeli firm has been accused of interfering in a number of foreign election campaigns, including in Scotland.

The allegations emerged following an investigation by French authorities who accused Blackcore of a smear campaign against three pro-Palestinian mayoral candidates in their local elections.

A report by France’s Office for Vigilance and Protection Against Foreign Digital Interference (VIGINUM) also found there had been suspected interference in other countries, including in Scotland.

“As part of this operation, VIGINUM identified the mobilisation of at least 256 accounts which enabled the dissemination of 1,400 comments, mainly on the posts of @JohnSwinney, @theSNP and @ScotGovFM,” the report said.

There were 652, 338 and 112 comments, respectively.

French Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu described the risk posed by the company as “significant”.

In a press conference alongside the Prime Minister, head of VIGINUM Marc-Antoine Brillant said: “We have encountered a structured modus operandi involving a wide variety of digital assets, fake websites, inauthentic accounts on online platforms, the ability to operate across multiple social media platforms simultaneously, and the use of a wide range of digital tools.

“The second finding is that this modus operandi did not target only the municipal elections in France.

“It also appears to have been used to carry out foreign digital interference operations in other countries or regions such as Angola, Togo, the elections in Scotland, and also the 2025 municipal election in New York.

“Finally, the investigations have made it possible to geolocate the foreign operator behind this malicious activity: a purported Israeli company known as BlackCore.”

The Prime Minister added they had asked Israeli authorities for an explanation and assistance following the investigation.

He said: “But once the authorities realised that this interference — which clearly took place from Israeli soil, specifically Israeli soil — occurred during the municipal election, it goes without saying that we did indeed ask for an explanation, as well as for assistance. It could be a private group in Israel.”

The SNP said the report was “deeply concerning” and the party had noticed a rise in negative interactions during the campaign.

A spokesperson told STV News: “This report from France’s disinformation watchdog is deeply concerning and any interference in our democratic process must be thoroughly investigated.

“Over the course of the Scottish election campaign, the SNP observed that posts across our social media platforms were subject to an unprecedented level of negative reactions and comments from accounts which appeared to be AI-generated bots.

“Our people powered digital campaign with authentic support from communities across Scotland countered these AI generated attacks and helped the SNP to a landslide victory.”

First Minister John Swinney added: “Online disinformation and misinformation are a real and present threat to our democracy, and these reports of bad actors attempting to interfere in the Scottish Parliament elections are deeply concerning.

“It is clear that orchestrated disinformation campaigns and foreign election interference are issues which need to be taken seriously.

“Urgent steps need to be taken to counter the threat of foreign online political interference, and ensure that our democratic processes are not undermined in this way.

“That begins with the UK Government, which has responsibility for national security, making dealing with hostile state online interference a far higher priority, as per Sir Philip Rycroft’s recommendation.”

The report was first revealed by Reuters News Agency which approached Blackcore for comment.

The company has since deleted its online presence.

STV News has asked the Electoral Commission for comment.