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Researchers say Israeli ad firm helped spyware makers hack Al Jazeera devices

Citizen Lab researchers say the attacks hit at least 45 Al Jazeera devices in 2024 and 2025, and several ad platforms have cut ties with DiscoverTech.

Updated Oct 17, 2026 · 16:16 UTC11 reports

The short version

  • Citizen Lab researchers say Israeli ad company DiscoverTech helped spyware developers place hacking software on popular websites.[NBC News]
  • The researchers say the attacks targeted at least 45 Al Jazeera devices in 2024 and 2025, and were reconstructed from Al Jazeera network logs.[NBC News]
  • Google said DiscoverTech is banned from Google Ads, IAB Europe said it suspended the company, and the report says Beeswax, Vungle and Eskimi took similar action.[NBC News]
  • The full extent of the targeting is unknown, and it is unclear whether the displayed ads led to compromise or infection.[TechCrunch · Hacker News]

Key facts

  • Citizen Lab researchers say DiscoverTech secretly helped spyware developers place hacking software on popular websites, resulting in an attack that targeted at least 45 Al Jazeera devices.[NBC News]
  • The hacks occurred in 2024 and 2025 and were not previously reported until the Citizen Lab report.[NBC News]
  • The malicious code was described as no-click spyware, meaning infection required no file download or link click.[NBC News]
  • The report is a joint effort between Citizen Lab and Confiant, a U.S. ad security company.[NBC News]
  • According to the report, DiscoverTech serves ads on almost 200,000 websites and mobile apps, including those of major media organizations and government agencies.[NBC News]
  • Google said DiscoverTech is now banned on Google Ads, and IAB Europe said it suspended the company from its platforms.[NBC News]
  • Researchers say millions of users worldwide have been served DiscoverTech ads since 2024, including in Yemen, Brazil, Mexico and Czechia.[Hacker News]
  • Researchers note it is unclear whether the displayed ads resulted in a compromise or infection.[TechCrunch]

What remains uncertain

  • The full extent of the targeting allegedly enabled by DiscoverTech is unknown.[Hacker News]
  • It is unclear whether the displayed ads resulted in a compromise or infection of users' devices.[TechCrunch]

Sources

Outlet counts describe coverage, not independent confirmation. Reports may share a wire service or original source.