ByJERUSALEM POST STAFF
Updated:

Four people have been arrested on suspicion of distributing private videos and photographs of hundreds of Israeli women and girls over an extended length of time.

The arrest followed an undercover investigation conducted by the Tel Aviv District Police Cyber Department, in which they focused on a group of people suspected of distributing videos of hundreds of women and minors in the country via the social media networks Telegram and Discord without the knowledge or consent of those photographed.
During the covert investigation, police investigators managed to map out the internal groups on the networks, which included thousands of participants, in order to trace the identity of the distributers.

The cyber department, along with the State Attorney's Office cyber department, monitered the situation online and gathered evidence against the "sources of distribution" in order to prosecute them. They did this by using advanced technological equipment, infiltrating the social media networks and overriding the anonymity settings of the suspects.

Once the suspects had been identified, Tel Aviv District Police arrived at their homes in Haida, Hadera, and Caesarea in order to arrest them for questioning. They also seized computers, storage devices, and other evidence found in their possession.