The US Department of the Treasury announced on Tuesday that it has imposed sanctions on five individuals and one entity associated with the commercial spyware company Intellexa Consortium, citing their development, operation, and distribution of spyware technology as posing a “significant threat” to US national security.
Intellexa Consortium is a network of commercial entities involved in developing computer monitoring software. The US government has been concerned about the potential sale of its monitoring technology to hostile nations and foreign agents, leading to strict trade sanctions against the network in recent years.
In a statement, the Treasury Department announced the latest round of economic sanctions targeting Intellexa’s operations. The five individuals sanctioned hold senior positions within Intellexa Consortium or its subsidiaries.
Felix Bitzios is identified as a shareholder of Intellexa Consortium and serves as the manager of its software development company, Intellexa S.A., based in Greece. Intellexa S.A. has been exporting Intellexa’s monitoring products to “authoritarian regimes.”
Andrea Nicola Constantino Hermes Gambazzi is another key figure within Intellexa Consortium and the actual owner of two other companies, Intellexa Ltd. and Thalestris Ltd., both based in Ireland. These companies play roles in reselling Intellexa products and holding other assets of Intellexa Consortium.
Merom Harpaz, also mentioned in the sanctions announcement, is described as a senior executive of Intellexa Consortium and the manager of Intellexa S.A.
Panagiota Karaoli, another individual on the sanctions list, serves as a director of multiple companies associated with Intellexa Consortium.
Artemis Artemiou, the fifth sanctioned individual, holds the positions of general manager and board member at Cytrox Holdings Zartkoruen Mukodo Reszvenytarsasag, another entity connected to Intellexa Consortium previously targeted for sanctions by the US Treasury Department.
Additionally, the Treasury Department has added the business entity Aliada Group Inc., located in the British Virgin Islands, to the sanctions list for reportedly handling tens of millions of dollars in transactions for Intellexa Consortium.
The sanctioned individuals and entities are prohibited from accessing any assets or interests they hold in the US or under the names of US persons. Those authorized to use frozen assets must report to the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control.
Researchers at the Citizen Lab at the University of Toronto issued warnings about Intellexa Consortium’s monitoring products as early as December 2021, citing the use of their spyware “Predator” to target the mobile phone of Egyptian opposition leader Ayman Nour living in exile in Turkey.
The Treasury Department noted that Intellexa Consortium’s spyware clients have also targeted US government officials, journalists, and policy analysts.
Back in July of last year, the US Department of Commerce added Intellexa S.A., Intellexa Ltd., Cytrox AD, and Cytrox Holdings to its Entity List, prohibiting them from conducting business within the US for posing a threat to global individual and organizational privacy and security.
In March of this year, sanctions were imposed on the four aforementioned companies and Thalestris Ltd., as well as two individuals: former Israeli military officer and Intellexa Consortium founder Tal Dilian, and Sara Aleksandra Fayssal Hamou, an offshore outsourcing expert providing management services to Intellexa Consortium.
Bradley T. Smith, the Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary for Terrorist Financing and Financial Crimes at the Treasury Department, emphasized that the US will not tolerate the unchecked spread of destructive technology that threatens national security, undermines privacy, and erodes civil liberties.
Smith reiterated that the Treasury Department will continue to combat those attempting to proliferate exploitative technologies.