Cyprus at centre of Predator spyware lawsuit following Greek convictions

Local corruptionCrimeGreeceIndependent Authority against CorruptionsurveillanceTop News Cyprus at centre of Predator spyware lawsuit following Greek convictions Cyprus At Centre Of Predator Spyware Lawsuit Following Greek Convictions Relevant News Cyprus at centre of Predator spyware lawsuit following Greek convictions 9 July 2026 Violent brawl breaks out in Xylofagou, alarming residents (photos+video) 9 July 2026 Delivery rider beaten and robbed by three in Limassol 9 July 2026 Fanis Makrides 9 July 2026 FacebookXWhatsAppEmailPrintViber Cyprus features prominently in a lawsuit filed by eight victims of illegal surveillance using the Predator spyware, following the conviction of businesspeople in Greece on 26 February 2026 — among them Tal Dilian, a figure well known in Cyprus. The case is expected to also draw the attention of Cyprus’s Independent Authority Against Corruption. The lengthy lawsuit, filed against 14 people and entities, contains a series of claims directly concerning Cyprus. The document includes 16 separate references to the island. The plaintiffs include Greek journalist Thanasis Koukakis, identified by the University of Toronto’s Citizen Lab as the first confirmed victim of the phone surveillance. Their lawsuit presents Cyprus as a base of operations for those implicated in the Predator software and the illegal surveillance campaign. According to the claims set out in the lawsuit, Tal Dilian and his wife, Sara Aleksandra Hamou, arranged some years ago to take up permanent residence in Cyprus. The lawsuit alleges that, through a network of companies — some registered in Cyprus — Dilian gained control of the Predator software before relocating his activities to Greece, where the illegal surveillance took place. The lawsuit points to one factor in that relocation: the conviction of a company linked to Dilian by Larnaca’s Permanent Criminal Court over the so-called “black van” case, which resulted in a €76,000 fine. The accompanying text states that the case created an unfavourable climate around the activities of the Intellexa group in Cyprus, prompting Dilian and Hamou to look to Greece as a new base for their business activities. Businessman Stavros Komnopoulos is named in the lawsuit as having introduced Dilian and his associate Shahak Avni to the case’s second defendant, Felix Bitzios. Bitzios headed the south-east Europe division of the Libra Group, active mainly in renewable energy, until March 2019. He is also named as beneficiary of several Cyprus-registered companies, including Viniato Limited, Boritaco Holdings Limited, Restine Limited, Rubricus Investments Limited, and Layth Capital Ventures Limited, the last of which was registered with Cyprus’s Registrar of Companies and Intellectual Property on 16 January 2019. On 2 September 2019, a company called SANTINOMO Limited was incorporated in Cyprus, with Bitzios as its sole shareholder and director. According to the lawsuit, the company was set up to carry out business activities including IT services, software development and systems integration, covering areas such as C4I applications, geospatial information systems and geoinformatics. The lawsuit, filed on behalf of the eight plaintiffs by lawyer Zacharias Kesses, also names employees of the Intellexa group who, despite being Greek nationals, live permanently in Cyprus. One of them is alleged to be a Group programmer specialising in server programming. Our correspondent sought comment yesterday from individuals named as defendants in the case but found no willingness to respond. The four defendants in the Predator case — Dilian, Hamou, Bitzios and Giannis Lavranos — were found guilty last February on charges relating to three offences, for which prison sentences were imposed. Investigative outlet Inside Story reported that the offences, although misdemeanours, carried a combined sentence of 126 years and 8 months, consolidated to eight years, with the full sentence currently suspended pending appeal. Subscribe to our Newsletter Latest News Violent brawl breaks out in Xylofagou, alarming residents (photos+video) Delivery rider beaten and robbed by three in Limassol Oil surges, stocks fall as Trump says Iran ceasefire no longer exists Trump says Iran contacted him seeking deal after US strikes on the country Trump says ceasefire deal with Iran may be “over” and tensions spiral after new strikes Surviving the summer: How to cool off in Cyprus (without a private pool) Do you need to speak Greek to live in Cyprus? Follow en.philenews on Google News and be the first to know all the news about Cyprus and the world.