Israeli firm BlackCore suspected of election interference in France, New York, Scotland, and Africa

France's Viginum agency, at a June 11 press conference alongside Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu, named Israeli firm BlackCore as the operator behind a broad international digital interference campaign. Viginum chief Marc-Antoine Brillant said the firm's methods — previously identified in a smear campaign against three hard-left France Unbowed (LFI) mayoral candidates in France's March 2026 elections — were also deployed against Scottish First Minister John Swinney and the SNP ahead of the May Holyrood elections, and in New York City's 2025 mayoral race, which was won by Zohran Mamdani. Viginum's report identified at least 256 coordinated accounts that posted approximately 1,400 comments targeting Swinney, the SNP, and the Scottish government on social media platform X, with Swinney's account alone receiving 652 targeted comments. Brillant acknowledged that investigators had not been able to identify who commissioned BlackCore's operations, stating no sponsor or sponsors had been confirmed. Lecornu said France had formally asked Israel for both an explanation and assistance in identifying those behind the campaign; Israel's embassy in Paris said it was awaiting details from the French probe before conducting its own investigation and denied any intention to interfere in French politics. BlackCore, which had described itself as an 'elite influence, cyber, and technology company built for the modern era of information warfare,' scrubbed its online presence after Reuters made inquiries and has not responded to requests for comment.