Tal Jonathan Dilian

Rule Changes

Convicted and sentenced to 8 years (in absentia); remains under U.S. Treasury sanctions

Commercial spyware companies have sold phone-hacking tools to governments for over a decade with virtually no criminal consequences for misuse. That changed on February 26 when an Athens court convicted four individuals behind the Predator spyware — including Intellexa founder Tal Dilian — and sentenced them to eight years in prison for illegally surveilling at least 87 Greek politicians, journalists, and military officials. It is the first time anywhere in the world that commercial spyware makers have been held criminally liable for deploying their products.

Updated Feb 26