Israeli firm BlackCore suspected of meddling in New York and Scotland votes

Reactions to BlackCore’s Alleged Election Meddling

• Many see the story as unsurprising, fitting a pattern of Israeli private “dirty tricks” and spyware firms (NSO, Black Cube, etc.).
• Several Israelis in the thread describe the news as shameful and say they were unaware of BlackCore; at least one expresses interest in protesting.
• Others doubt French diplomatic responses will have teeth, expecting only denials and “mystery” from Israel.
• Confusion appears between BlackCore and Black Cube; users clarify they are distinct firms, both accused of foreign political interference.

Israeli Tech, Spyware, and Moral Legitimacy

• Multiple comments argue Israel has a disproportionate number of firms focused on surveillance, malware, and disinformation, allegedly leveraging skills developed in the IDF and occupation.
• Others counter that Israel also has many benign or beneficial tech startups (biotech, green tech, infrastructure), but these get less media attention.
• There is debate over whether “good” Israeli tech should more loudly distance itself from military/spy sectors or whether that’s unfairly demanded.
• Some equate Israel’s role as a global supplier of repression tech (Pegasus, disinfo, etc.) to a modern “Nazi Germany” or apartheid South Africa; others object to what they see as overuse or dilution of “genocide” and Nazi analogies.

Foreign Lobbying and Election Influence

• Commenters compare Israel’s influence operations to Russia’s (disinfo, social media manipulation, cultivating politicians and think tanks).
• AIPAC and related US lobbying organizations feature heavily: some frame them as ordinary American political groups; others see them as de facto foreign influence with outsized power and spending.
• Data on foreign lobbying spend is shared, noting that Israel is not the highest spender, but critics say this omits domestically funded pro‑Israel groups.
• UK examples (Elbit Systems, Conservative/Labour Friends of Israel, prosecutions of protesters) are cited as parallel soft-power strategies.

Broader Political and Identity Debates

• Long subthreads debate Zionism (religious vs secular nationalism), the historical creation of Israel (colonialism vs post‑Holocaust refuge), and whether the state’s founding was legitimate.
• Sharp disagreements over whether Israeli public opinion “supports genocide,” what counts as genocide vs expulsion, and parallels with post‑9/11 anti‑Muslim sentiment.
• Antisemitism vs criticism of Israel is heavily contested: some report increased antisemitic abuse; others argue accusations of antisemitism are overused to deflect criticism.

Meta: HN, Politics, and Censorship

• Multiple users predict or note heavy flagging, arguing controversial Israel topics are disproportionately suppressed.
• Others respond that the thread is political “rage bait” with little technical detail, hence off‑charter for HN, while some defend the tech–politics intersection as on‑topic.