UK Government Blocks Release of Files on Israeli Firm BlackCore Over Scottish Election Meddling Claims 2026

Key Points

• The UK Cabinet Office has dispensed with a Freedom of Information (FOI) request for emails regarding Israeli cyber firm BlackCore, claiming that it would pose a threat to national security or the UK’s relations with other countries.
• BlackCore faced allegations of running interference operations against elections in Scotland, New York City and France from French disinformation watchdog Viginum in June.
• The company also may have carried out projects in Angola and Togo, but it’s not known who ordered them, Viginum’s director Marc-Antoine Brillant said.
• In the case of BlackCore, Viginum claimed to have targeted Scotland’s First Minister, John Swinney.
• The Scottish Government did not release all of the material on national security grounds but did release letters from within the organisation trying to understand the extent to which there was interference.
• The Scottish National Party, led by Mr Swinney, has made charges of genocide against Israel in Gaza before, repeating this as a charge in August 2025.

Edinburgh (Britain Today News) August 13, 2026 — The UK Government has declined to disclose any information it holds on an Israeli cyber intelligence company suspected of attempting to interfere in Scottish parliamentary elections, arguing that releasing such material could damage Britain’s relationships with foreign states. The refusal comes months after French authorities publicly named the firm, BlackCore, as a suspect in a wider pattern of digital interference operations that allegedly stretched from Scotland to New York City.

What is BlackCore and why has it come under scrutiny?

BlackCore is an Israeli cyber firm that has been placed at the centre of an international investigation into digital interference in democratic elections. The company was named in June by Viginum, France’s state-run disinformation watchdog, as part of a broader inquiry into coordinated online activity designed to influence voters in several countries. Although BlackCore has not been formally charged with any offence, the French authorities’ findings prompted journalists and campaigners to press both the UK and Scottish governments for transparency over what, if anything, British officials knew about the company’s activities.

What did the French disinformation watchdog Viginum uncover?

Viginum’s investigation identified a pattern of activity it believed was linked to BlackCore across multiple electoral contests. The watchdog’s chief, Marc-Antoine Brillant, said the inquiry had led investigators to suspect the firm had been

“used to carry out foreign digital interference operations in other countries or regions, such as Angola, Togo, the elections in Scotland, and the 2025 municipal election in New York”.

Brillant added that despite identifying the alleged operational pattern, investigators had not been able to establish who had actually commissioned BlackCore to carry out the work, leaving a significant gap in the picture of who ultimately stood to benefit from the alleged interference.

How did BlackCore allegedly target Scotland’s First Minister?

According to Viginum, accounts linked to BlackCore did not simply engage in generalised disinformation but singled out a specific figure: John Swinney, Scotland’s First Minister. The watchdog’s findings indicated that BlackCore-linked accounts specifically targeted Swinney during the period covered by the Scottish parliament elections, though the precise nature and content of the alleged targeting has not been made fully public. The claim places Swinney, as the country’s most senior elected politician, at the centre of an international disinformation inquiry that also touches on elections thousands of miles away in New York.

Why did the UK government refuse to release information on BlackCore?

The refusal stems from an FOI request submitted by the Scottish newspaper The National, which asked the UK and Scottish governments to release

“any correspondence (including emails and letters) mentioning the French government agency Viginum and discussing its findings regarding alleged Israeli-linked influence operations (and the firm BlackCore) affecting Scotland or Scottish elections”.

Officials at the Cabinet Office concluded that the information sought was too sensitive to release, arguing that disclosure could compromise ongoing diplomatic relationships and undermine national security interests that, in their assessment, outweighed the public’s right to know.

What exactly did the UK Cabinet Office say in its refusal?

In its response to The National, the Cabinet Office stated plainly that the request

“relates to information that must not be disclosed to safeguard national security”.

The department went further, setting out its reasoning for withholding the material entirely rather than releasing a redacted version. It said:

“We have weighed these public interests against a very strong public interest in safeguarding national security. This sensitive information must be protected, as disclosure of information would damage national security. This interest could only be overridden in exceptional circumstances.”

The Cabinet Office concluded:

“Taking into account all the circumstances of this case, we have determined that the balance of the public interest favours withholding this information.”

Could the refusal affect UK relations with Israel or other states?

The Cabinet Office’s justification explicitly referenced the risk of prejudicing

“relations between the United Kingdom and any other state”

as grounds for withholding the documents. This wording suggests officials were concerned not only with protecting sensitive intelligence methods but also with avoiding diplomatic friction that could arise from publicly linking an Israeli-based company to allegations of interference in British democratic processes. The department did not name Israel directly in its published response, nor did it confirm or deny whether BlackCore itself, the Israeli state, or another party was believed to be behind any interference activity.

How did the Scottish Government respond to the same request?

Unlike the UK Government, the Scottish Government did not withhold all of the requested material. While it also cited national security grounds to redact certain sensitive information, it released a number of internal documents that reveal how officials in Edinburgh reacted to the Viginum findings once they became public. These documents offer a rare glimpse into the government machinery that swung into action following the French watchdog’s disclosures, showing officials attempting to establish the facts and brief the First Minister directly on the matter.

What did Scottish officials say internally about the Viginum report?

Among the documents released was correspondence from the principal private secretary to the First Minister, who wrote to colleagues:

“I have shared this with FM – anticipating that he will want to understand more about this report, what we/UKG and security apparatus know/knew about it, and what actions remedial and future/proactive are being taken.”

The note indicates that Swinney’s office sought clarity not only on what the UK Government and security services already knew about the alleged interference, but also on what steps, if any, were being taken in response — questions that, based on the Cabinet Office’s own FOI refusal, appear to remain only partially answered in public.

Who is John Swinney and what is his record on the Israel-Gaza conflict?

John Swinney is the First Minister of Scotland and leader of the Scottish National Party (SNP), which has taken a consistently critical position on Israel’s military conduct in Gaza. Swinney has personally used strong language to describe the conflict, telling reporters in August 2025:

“It’s quite clear that there is a genocide in Palestine – it can’t be disputed.”

He continued:

“I have seen reports of terrible atrocities which have the character of being genocide. I’ve expressed that, and obviously it’s not reached all those individuals, but that’s my feeling.”

Swinney’s outspoken stance on Gaza adds a further layer of political context to the allegations that an Israeli-linked firm sought to influence his own electoral prospects.
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Has Viginum said who might be responsible for commissioning BlackCore?

No. Despite naming BlackCore and describing the alleged pattern of operations across several countries, Viginum’s chief Marc-Antoine Brillant was explicit that investigators had not established who had commissioned the company to act. This remains one of the central unanswered questions in the case: while the alleged operational fingerprints point towards BlackCore, the identity of any client, state actor, or political interest behind the alleged campaign has not been disclosed, whether by the French watchdog or by any government agency that may hold relevant intelligence.

What happens next?

With the UK Government maintaining its refusal to publish any correspondence on the matter, scrutiny is likely to continue in the Scottish Parliament and in the press, particularly given the partial transparency shown by the Scottish Government in contrast to Westminster’s blanket refusal. Campaigners for government transparency may seek to challenge the Cabinet Office’s decision through an appeal to the Information Commissioner’s Office, a route commonly used when public authorities invoke national security exemptions under the Freedom of Information Act. For now, the extent of what UK intelligence and security services knew about BlackCore’s alleged activities — and when they knew it — remains undisclosed, leaving open questions about the security of Scotland’s electoral process and the adequacy of the UK’s response to foreign interference allegations targeting one of its most senior elected officials.