The startup offers its customers solutions to fight against insecurity thanks to new technologies.
It’s almost a spy movie scenario: being able to take control of surveillance cameras through software. But it is indeed one of the solutions offered by the company Toka, a specialist in the fight against insecurity, as Numerama tells it.
The firm, founded in 2018 by former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak and ex-national cybersecurity chief Yaron Rosen, today works only with “military, homeland security organizations, intelligence services and of law enforcement in the United States and with its closest allies” according to the indications of his website.
By examining the map of the places where the company has an activity, we find many Western countries, including France. However, we do not know the identity of the potential customers of this company regulated by the Israeli Ministry of Defense.
A software that allows you to modify the images of surveillance cameras
And the Israeli company’s star software allows these secret clients to locate the surveillance cameras of a given perimeter, hack into them and then access their content. It is even possible to modify old tapes according to information from the Israeli national daily Ha’aretz. A process that could allow certain organizations to obtain evidence or incriminating extracts.
Another advantage of this software: it leaves no trace of a possible passage on the hacked devices. However, the company’s activities raise questions about their legality. Charges that Toka refutes.
“Toka conducts a rigorous annual review, guided by international indices of corruption, rule of law and freedoms. We are also assisted by external advisers with recognized expertise in anti-corruption practices,” said a spokesperson for Toka in Ha’aretz.
And with surveillance cameras now numerous in public or private places (streets, shopping centers, offices, etc.), the Toka company offers optimal visibility to all its customers over a large part of their territories, including France.
