Court Orders Journalist, State to Pay Former Bar Head NIS 600,000 Over Phone Hack

The Central District Court in Lod partially accepted a lawsuit filed by Efi Naveh, former head of the Israel Bar Association, against journalist Hadas Steif and the State of Israel. Naveh sued over the hacking of his mobile phones and the publication of their personal contents on Galatz radio in January 2019. The judge ruled that Steif's actions constituted a severe violation of Naveh's privacy and the tort of breach of statutory duty, contravening the Computer Law and Wiretapping Law.

The court stated that Steif "was the initiating and mediating factor who initiated and promoted the breach of the password-protected devices... Steif's actions have a criminal character by virtue of her central role." The court added that this was an "exceptional series of privacy violations at the heart of Naveh's right to the privacy of his personal and public life." It was noted that access to Naveh's personal information required expertise due to password protection, and the improper access and retrieval of the data were done at Steif's initiative, mediation, and approval.

The court rejected Steif's defense arguments, including good faith, public interest, and journalistic source protection, determining that "a journalist cannot be an active partner in a violation of the law that constitutes a violation of privacy." The ruling also stated that Chani Naveh, who possessed the devices, was not authorized to transfer them to a third party, and that a divorce agreement did not absolve the defendants.

The State of Israel was held vicariously liable for Steif's actions, as she was a crime reporter for Galatz at the time. Steif and the state were ordered to pay Naveh a total of NIS 450,000 in damages, plus expenses and legal fees. Steif was also ordered to pay an additional NIS 25,000 for libel due to a Facebook post. The total amount awarded is approximately NIS 600,000.

Claims against other journalists named in the suit were dismissed, primarily because they received the material in good faith without knowledge of how it was obtained. The ruling is expected to have significance regarding the boundaries of journalistic work, the transfer of mobile devices between spouses or other parties, and the protection of personal information stored on them. Naveh was represented by attorneys Boaz Ben-Tzur, Guy Roh, and Hadar Goldstein.