Two Israeli companies manipulated online advertisements to install surveillance software on dozens of computers at the Qatari news organization Al Jazeera, researchers have found.
Candiru, which helps governments hack mobile phones, and ad-tech firm Discover Tech used online advertising platforms to target and infect 45 devices at Al Jazeera, according to a report published Thursday by the University of Toronto’s digital watchdog group, Citizen Lab. In 2024 and 2025, the Tel Aviv-based companies used advertisements containing malicious code to implant the spyware, which collected data off the machines, according to the researchers.
Discover Tech has masqueraded as a legitimate advertising company for years, serving ads through several major networks, including one operated by Alphabet Inc.’s Google, according to the report. The firm appeared on approved-vendor lists maintained by Google and advertising industry association IAB Europe, it said.
Discover Tech and Candiru did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Candiru, which is also known as Integrity Labs, was acquired in 2025 by the US investment fund Integrity Partners, which also did not respond to requests for comment. Al Jazeera did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
In response to Citizen Lab’s findings, IAB Europe said in a statement that it had suspended Discover Tech from its global vendor list for violating its policies. A Google spokesperson said it had confirmed Discover Tech was involved in the delivery of spyware and blocked the company from its ad platforms for “systematically violating our policies.”
Ad platforms such as those operated by Google allow advertisers to gather information about people’s interests, location and browsing habits to serve them with more relevant ads. These networks span the globe and generate hundreds of billions of dollars of revenue for their operators.
Other companies have previously repurposed online advertising platforms as a means to collect data on people for government surveillance, helping law enforcement and intelligence agencies track down suspects. But the use of ads to deploy spyware and hack phones and computers is a more recent and less understood development.
“The way the online advertising ecosystem works today is a security threat,” said Wolfie Christl, a senior researcher at Citizen Lab. “For states, for the private sector, for civil society – everyone.”
Cybersecurity firm Confiant, which specializes in analyzing malicious advertisements, partnered with Citizen Lab on the research and said in a report that Discover Tech was involved in espionage.
Companies that sell spyware were likely turning to advertising as a method of hacking devices because it’s increasingly difficult to get people to click malicious links sent in text messages or emails, said Jerome Dangu, Confiant’s chief technology officer and co-founder.
“What we are seeing is the rise of ad-based surveillance,” Dangu said.
According to Citizen Lab’s report, Discover Tech operates a platform named Controlium, which uses advertisements to build profiles about millions of people. This enables spyware companies, including Candiru, to covertly hack individual targets by sending them advertisements that appear benign to the user, but in fact contain malicious code that silently infects devices without the victim needing to click on any link, the report said.
In 2021, the US government sanctioned Candiru, accusing the company of supplying to governments spyware that was used to target government officials, businesspeople, academics, activists and journalists.
Discover Tech’s website presents itself as an advertising specialist, which can help clients “optimize campaigns and mobile performance.” But the company also has links to the spyware industry. Between 2020 and 2025, Israeli entrepreneur Eric Banoun served on its board of directors, according to company records. Banoun, who did not respond to a request for comment, previously founded the government surveillance firms Circles and Senpai Technologies.
Between March and June of this year, advertisements linked to Discover Tech were shown on almost 200,000 unique websites and inside Android and iOS applications in dozens of countries, Citizen Lab found.
Discover Tech’s ads were served in sensitive networks, including those of NATO, the European Parliament and the US Department of Defense, according to the researchers. The company’s ads were also identified inside networks associated with several major technology companies, they said.
While finding Discover Tech’s ads in a network doesn’t necessarily mean any staff devices have been hacked, it is a cause for concern, according to Citizen Lab.
“Cybersecurity agencies, regulators, lawmakers in all regions of the world must urgently step in and investigate,” said Christl.
This report is auto-generated from the Bloomberg news service. AzerNEWS holds no responsibility for its content.