By © European Union, 1998 – 2025
Athens — September 24, 2025 – A scandal widely described as “Greece’s Watergate” has returned to the spotlight as four individuals face trial in Athens over their alleged role in marketing the controversial Predator spyware. The case comes after years of accusations that Greek intelligence services and government officials engaged in widespread surveillance of ministers, military officers, judges, and journalists.
The spyware scandal erupted in 2022 when Nikos Androulakis, then a Member of the European Parliament and now leader of Greece’s socialist Pasok party, discovered he had been targeted by Predator through a malicious text message. Investigators later confirmed he had also been monitored by Greece’s National Intelligence Service (EYP) under the justification of “national security reasons.”
Predator, developed by Intellexa — an Israeli-owned company operating out of Athens — has the ability to hijack a smartphone’s messages, microphone, and camera, effectively turning it into a real-time surveillance tool.
Government at the Heart of the Crisis
Soon after the revelations, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis faced mounting political pressure. Having placed EYP directly under his supervision upon taking office in 2019, critics argued that his government could not claim ignorance. The resignations of EYP chief Panagiotis Kontoleon and the prime minister’s top aide, Grigoris Dimitriadis, only deepened suspicions.
According to the Hellenic Data Protection Authority, at least 87 individuals were targeted by Predator. Twenty-seven of them were also under surveillance by EYP — among them cabinet members and senior military officers. While watchdogs argued this overlap revealed a coordinated surveillance strategy, the government maintained it was “a coincidence,” insisting Predator was never officially deployed by law enforcement.
A Supreme Court report published in July 2024 concluded there was “clearly no connection” between Predator and government officials, a finding critics dismissed as inadequate.
Limited Accountability, Mounting Criticism
The current trial focuses only on four private individuals — two Greeks and two Israelis — charged with misdemeanors linked to Predator’s marketing. Opposition parties and rights groups argue that no serious investigation has been launched into potential links between the spyware network and state officials.
“What began as a political scandal has now evolved into an institutional scandal, tainting both the judiciary and independent authorities,” said investigative journalist Thanasis Koukakis, himself a confirmed target of both Predator and EYP surveillance.
Eliza Triantafyllou of Inside Story noted that no ministers, judges, or military officers allegedly targeted have filed complaints or been called as witnesses. “If someone has not followed the wiretapping scandal, they would think four individuals, on their own initiative, tapped the phones of 87 people in Greece using spyware otherwise sold only to state agencies,” she said.
Democratic Safeguards Questioned
In response to the scandal, Greece introduced new legislation governing the confidentiality of communications. While the law introduced additional safeguards for law enforcement, critics warn it also restricts citizens’ ability to learn whether they were previously under surveillance.
The investigation into Intellexa itself has also drawn criticism. Authorities raided its Athens offices months after the scandal broke but reportedly left empty-handed.
Christos Rammos, former president of the Hellenic Authority for Communication Security and Privacy (ADAE), described the ordeal as a “traumatic experience” for Greek democracy. “In Greece, the political system cannot tolerate independent authorities. The wiretapping affair was an open war,” he told the BBC.
European Scrutiny and Lasting Impact
The scandal gained international traction after Androulakis’s targeting triggered an EU inquiry into the use of spyware across Europe. Sophie in ’t Veld, former MEP and rapporteur of the European Parliament’s PEGA committee, accused the Greek government of attempting “at every turn” to block efforts to uncover the truth.
“The spyware issue is not isolated — it’s a tool to silence critical voices and stifle scrutiny,” she warned, adding that its chilling effect continues to be felt among journalists and civil society.
As the misdemeanor trial of the four accused individuals opens, questions remain unanswered: Who authorized the surveillance of Greece’s top officials? And why has no one in government been held accountable?
For now, critics argue, the “Greek Watergate” remains unresolved — a shadow hanging over both the country’s political leadership and its democratic institutions.
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