Israeli Private Investigator Awaits Trial in US Cyberespionage Case
Israeli private investigator Amit Forlit faces trial in New York for allegedly running a global hacking scheme targeting US environmental activists on behalf of energy interests.
Amit Forlit, a 58-year-old Israeli private investigator from Haifa and former Shin Bet operative, is at the center of a major international cyberespionage and industrial sabotage case in the United States. According to an extensive investigation published by The New York Times, Forlit, who was extradited from London to New York in April, is currently awaiting trial wearing an electronic bracelet and faces decades in prison.
The United States Department of Justice accuses Forlit of managing a global criminal enterprise that hired hackers in India to breach the email accounts of American environmental activists. The operation, codenamed Fox Hunt, aimed to discredit activists and derail multibillion-dollar lawsuits filed against energy corporations for concealing climate change damage. Forlit denies all charges against him.
The Oil Giant and Lobbying Firms Connection
While federal prosecutors refrained from naming the clients in the indictment, Forlit's defense attorneys revealed that the oil giant allegedly behind the operations is ExxonMobil, and the intermediary is the Washington-based public relations and lobbying firm DCI Group. Both companies promptly denied any connection to the affair. ExxonMobil stated that the company is unaware of hacking activities and strongly condemns them, while a lobby spokesperson noted that the Department of Justice clarified their office is not under investigation.
According to the US extradition request, the hackers sent targeted phishing emails to victims, stole passwords, and extracted internal documents leaked to the conservative media and used by the oil corporation in legal proceedings. Targets included accounts related to the Rockefeller family fund, which finances investigations and lawsuits against the fuel industry, as well as the account of Jennifer Cunningham, a political consultant and ex-wife of former New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, whose office investigated ExxonMobil.
International Operations and Lifestyle
Court documents and media reports portray Forlit as a figure blending clandestine operations with a taste for high living. In the 1990s, following his service in the Shin Bet, he established the Gadot Information Services investigation firm in Tel Aviv and Haifa. Later, he opened two branches in the Miami area, humorously renaming them in the Florida registry with Hebrew transliterations of sentences translating to "This is not a dentist's office" and "Neither is this a dentist's office."
His personal life included hobnobbing with the business elite, attending Donald Trump's first presidential inauguration, and celebrating his 51st birthday with a James Bond-themed party. Currently, Forlit's defense attorney, Sabrina Shroff, is requesting an extension for pre-trial motions, arguing she must review approximately four million pages of investigative material—a task made more complex by Forlit's limited English reading proficiency. His next court hearing is scheduled for December 10.
