Multi-Million Euro Lawsuits Filed by Eight Predator Spyware Victims

Eight victims of the Predator spyware surveillance case have filed lawsuits seeking total compensation of €7.6 million ($8.28 million). The legal action targets four convicted private individuals, including Tal Dilian, and executives of Intellexa. This move opens a new judicial front regarding illegal surveillance in Greece, as we noted in our analysis of recent regulatory developments.

Targets of the Lawsuits and Claims

These new legal actions follow the high-profile wiretapping scandal. As revealed, the lawsuits specifically target four individuals who have already been sentenced to heavy penalties totaling 126 years during the case's criminal investigation. Among the defendants is Tal Dilian, who has publicly issued threats of new revelations ahead of his upcoming Court of Appeal trial. Furthermore, the lawsuits involve other executives from Intellexa, the company responsible for marketing the Predator malware, as well as other involved parties.

The filing of these lawsuits represents an effort by victims to raise civil claims beyond the criminal sanctions they are already pursuing. Simultaneously, the victims continue to request a re-investigation of the case, despite the fact that the case file was recently archived for a second consecutive time.

Profile of the Plaintiffs

The lawsuits were filed on behalf of the first eight victims by lawyer Zacharias Kesses. The list of plaintiffs includes figures from various professional and state sectors. Specifically, participants include journalist Thanasis Koukakis and Artemis Seaford, a Stanford University-educated political scientist who has been active in the cybersecurity sector since 2020, following our reports on the acceleration of the digital state.

Participation by state officials is also significant, including Penelope Miniati, a high-ranking official of the Ελληνική Αστυνομία (Hellenic Police) who testified as a witness in the criminal trial, as well as two employees of the ΕΥΠ (National Intelligence Service, Greece's primary intelligence agency), Angeliki Roussou and Zoe Maria Sakkali. The list is completed by Antonia Primba, a former associate of MEP Stelios Kympouropoulos and special advisor to the Γενική Γραμματεία Τηλεπικοινωνιών και Ταχυδρομείων (General Secretariat of Telecommunications and Post), which we highlighted for IT projects and digital transformation efforts, and lawyer Ioannis Fytilis, who represented the civil prosecution in the preceding criminal trial. Furthermore, the lawsuit reveals for the first time that journalist Spyros Sideris was also a surveillance victim.

The Compromise Process

In their multi-page lawsuit, the victims do not limit themselves to the claim for €7.6 million ($8.28 million). They provide a detailed, step-by-step description of exactly how the surveillance network was set up. The legal documents explain in detail the methodology by which their mobile phones were compromised by the Predator malware, offering new data on the operation of the surveillance ring.