Israel Police to Investigate Leak of Personal Data on Mother and Daughter
Translated & summarized from Calcalist by baba
Israel's Privacy Protection Authority has ordered the police to investigate the leak of sensitive personal information and videos of Mali and Liel Yahalomi, who were found in Argentina on August 14th. The Authority suspects the information originated from the police, including footage of their discovery and interrogation, as well as private communications and financial details. Director Gilad Samama stated the publications harmed their privacy without justification and against police procedures, demanding a thorough review and lessons learned.
The story in 6 lines · by baba
- Israel's Privacy Protection Authority ordered a police investigation into leaked personal data of Mali and Liel Yahalomi.
- The leaked information includes videos of the mother and daughter in vulnerable states and sensitive investigation details.
- The Authority suspects the source of the leaked information was the Israeli police.
- The investigation will examine how the data reached the media and police procedures for information sharing.
- Privacy Authority Director Gilad Samama called the publications a severe privacy violation.
- The police must draw systemic lessons to prevent future privacy breaches in similar cases.
Israel's Privacy Protection Authority has ordered the police to conduct a comprehensive investigation into the suspected violation of privacy concerning Mali Yahalomi and her daughter Liel. This follows the publication of sensitive personal information and videos of the two after they were located in Argentina. The Authority stated that media reports suggest the source of this information, at least in part, was the police.
Director of the Privacy Protection Authority, Gilad Samama, contacted Police Commissioner Daniel Levi and the Police's Internal Privacy Supervisor, George Kiverkian, regarding the matter. Samama instructed the internal supervisor to use his authority under the Privacy Protection Law to determine how the recordings and personal details reached the media, allegedly in violation of police procedures.
The directive pertains to publications since the pair was found in Argentina on August 14th, after they had disappeared for several days, causing concern among security forces and the Israeli police who had invested significant effort in locating them. According to the Authority, published materials included videos of them in vulnerable states during their discovery on a bus and their questioning by police. Sensitive details from the investigation were also revealed, such as private correspondence, AI search queries, financial information, location data, and their expected arrival time in Israel. Even their recent landing in Israel was reportedly leaked in advance.
The investigation will also examine any considerations made by the police before allowing the publications. Beyond the data transfer, the police are required to draw systemic conclusions and lessons regarding privacy protection when sharing information with the media in similar incidents. Samama ordered that the findings and lessons be submitted to the Authority.
Samama commented that while the importance of announcing the location and well-being of missing persons is clear, publishing videos of them in vulnerable moments and revealing personal, financial, and location details after they were found is problematic. He stated that these publications, apparently originating from the police investigation, severely harmed their privacy without legitimate justification and seemingly against police procedures. Samama emphasized the need for the police to thoroughly investigate the leak and learn lessons to ensure citizens' right to privacy is not compromised in such events.
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