Netanyahu Aide's WhatsApp Messages Leaked as Israel Faces New Security Breach

Leaked WhatsApp messages and private videos involving Netanyahu’s closest associates have raised fresh concerns over security vulnerabilities inside Israel’s leadership.

Leaked WhatsApp messages and private videos involving Netanyahu’s closest associates have raised fresh concerns over security vulnerabilities inside Israel’s leadership.

Haaretz verified leaked WhatsApp correspondence belonging to Netanyahu adviser Jonatan Urich, including exchanges with senior Likud officials, journalists and pollsters.

Videos and photographs allegedly obtained from Israeli Ambassador Yossi Shelley’s personal account include footage aboard a military helicopter carrying Netanyahu.

Israeli security authorities are investigating Shelley’s leak but have not opened an investigation into Urich’s breach, despite concerns possible foreign access.

Netanyahu Adviser’s Messages Leaked

Purported WhatsApp correspondence belonging to Jonatan Urich, a close adviser to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, was leaked online on Sunday, exposing communications with senior political figures and raising fresh questions security vulnerabilities surrounding the prime minister.

According to Haaretz , which examined the leaked materials and verified their authenticity, the correspondence includes exchanges between Urich and senior officials from Netanyahu’s Likud party, journalists and political pollsters.

The newspaper reported that Urich, who was previously barred from working with Netanyahu amid investigations into affairs involving the Prime Minister’s Office, was permitted by the Shin Bet security agency to resume his work in May.

He has since been working from the Israeli prime minister’s Office building in Jerusalem.

Hackers Claim Breach of Netanyahu Chief of Staff, Threaten to Release Sensitive Files

Hackers Claim Breach of Netanyahu Chief of Staff, Threaten to Release Sensitive Files

The leak reportedly emerged alongside the publication of videos and photographs allegedly obtained from the personal account of Yossi Shelley, Israel’s ambassador to the United Arab Emirates and former director general of the Prime Minister’s Office.

Haaretz reported that the Shin Bet is investigating the leak involving Shelley but has not opened a corresponding investigation into Urich’s communications.

The distinction, according to the newspaper, stems from Urich’s status as a private adviser rather than an official state employee.

Videos from Netanyahu’s Military Helicopter

The materials allegedly taken from Shelley’s account include videos filmed during official travel involving Netanyahu and senior Israeli security officials.

One video was reportedly recorded inside a military helicopter carrying Netanyahu, former Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar, former chief of staff Tzachi Braverman and several security personnel.

Another showed the prime minister’s aircraft arriving in New York in September 2024.

Among the photographs released was an image taken aboard the same flight showing the secure internal telephone installed on Israel’s official Wing of Zion aircraft. The materials were published on Telegram, according to Haaretz.

The newspaper distinguished between the two leaks, saying it had verified the authenticity of Urich’s correspondence while describing the Shelley materials as allegedly obtained from his personal account.

The Shin Bet is investigating the Shelley incident, but the security breach involving Urich has not prompted a similar official inquiry.

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Iran-Linked Hackers Target FBI Director Kash Patel, Leak Emails and Photos

AI Monitoring Tool Exposed Security Vulnerability

The latest disclosures follow an earlier Haaretz investigation into a media-monitoring tool developed by Urich for Netanyahu and his wife, Sara.

The tool was built using Anthropic’s Claude artificial intelligence system and designed to track media coverage of the prime minister, his wife and other political figures.

According to Haaretz, Urich inadvertently left the tool’s code publicly accessible online, exposing information its operation and a security vulnerability.

The system monitors approximately 50 news sources every 90 seconds, ranking them according to importance and identifying stories requiring an immediate response. It also generates media summaries for Netanyahu twice daily.

The newspaper reported that the monitoring system sends alerts to two dedicated WhatsApp groups.

One group focuses exclusively on mentions of Sara Netanyahu, while the other monitors coverage of the prime minister and the Likud party.

The exposed code revealed the sources used to compile information provided to Netanyahu.

Haaretz said the security vulnerability was removed after the newspaper contacted Urich for .

Concerns over Foreign Access

The exposure of Urich’s monitoring tool subsequently raised additional concerns the security of his communications.

Following Haaretz’s investigation, Israeli business newspaper Calcalist reported that Urich had connected his personal device to a WhatsApp messaging service developed by a Dubai-based company.

According to Calcalist, the arrangement raised concerns that Urich’s correspondence could potentially be accessible to a foreign entity.

Despite those concerns, Haaretz reported that no Israeli state body had begun examining the security of the information or contacted Urich.

Israel’s National Cyber Directorate told the newspaper that responsibility for the matter belonged to the Shin Bet or the official responsible for security at the Prime Minister’s Office. The Shin Bet, however, said it was not handling the issue.

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A security official at the Prime Minister’s Office also said the office was not investigating the possible information leak because Urich was not formally employed there.

A source in the office told Haaretz that “Yossi Shelley is an ambassador, so inquiries should be directed to the Foreign Ministry.”

The source added that “Urich is not an employee of the Prime Minister’s Office. We have nothing to do with the matter.”

Urich previously told Israel’s High Court of Justice that his work for Netanyahu did not expose him to classified information.

Iranian Hackers Target Israeli Officials

The latest disclosures come amid a series of cyberattacks and leaks targeting senior Israeli political, military and intelligence figures.

According to Haaretz, hackers linked to Iranian intelligence have compromised accounts belonging to several prominent Israeli officials over the past two years.

In April, the Handala hacking group released private photographs, videos and personal documents allegedly obtained from former Israeli military chief Herzl Halevi.

The group claimed it had spent years collecting sensitive information.

In a statement cited by Haaretz, Handala said it had worked “silently and relentlessly … watching, recording, and collecting everything that matters.”

The group also claimed to have obtained “over 19,000 confidential images and videos … from top-secret meetings, classified files, and even crisis rooms of the Zionist military’s General Staff.”

Those claims have not been independently established in their entirety.

Less than two weeks before the Halevi leak, Handala published material allegedly obtained from the personal Gmail account of former Mossad director Tamir Pardo.

The group also claimed to have accessed the personal email account of FBI Director Kash Patel.

In December, Handala released videos and text messages after allegedly compromising the phone of Netanyahu’s chief of staff, Tzachi Braverman.

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Data of 100 Officers Exposed: Handala Announces Breach of Israel’s Elite Maglan Unit

Security Questions Remain Unanswered

The latest leaks have renewed questions the handling of sensitive communications involving individuals working closely with Israel’s political and security leadership.

Haaretz reported that the Shin Bet, Urich and the National Cyber Directorate did not respond to requests for concerning the latest disclosures.

The contrasting treatment of the Shelley and Urich incidents has also raised questions responsibility for investigating security breaches involving advisers who work closely with the prime minister without holding formal government positions.

Although Urich has maintained that his work does not expose him to classified material, the leaked correspondence and earlier vulnerability in his monitoring tool have drawn attention to the potential risks associated with private communications systems used by members of Netanyahu’s inner circle.

The identity of those responsible for the latest leaks has not been established in the reporting, and there is no confirmed connection between the Urich and Shelley disclosures and the earlier Handala operations.

(PC, Haaretz, Calcalist)