Netanyahu shares personal phone number, invites ‘Israelis’ to call him

• Netanyahu accused of harvesting voter data ahead of election.
• 'Israeli' PM phone campaign sparks voter privacy concerns.
• Netanyahu’s voter outreach raises data-privacy alarm.
• Likud faces scrutiny over voter data collection.
• Netanyahu campaign exposes private voter information.

'Israeli' Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu faced mounting criticism from privacy experts and political opponents after releasing a video inviting citizens to contact what he claimed was his personal phone number.

While framed as a direct line for citizens to share questions and concerns with the Prime Minister, cybersecurity experts and legal analysts warn the initiative is primarily designed to feed Likud’s voter database ahead of the upcoming legislative election.

In the video published across social media, Netanyahu is seen alongside his senior media adviser, Topaz Luk, agreeing to make the number public to allegedly "hear what's troubling" the public.

"The main purpose is to gather data," explained Dr. Tehilla Shwartz Altshuler, a senior fellow at the 'Israel' Democracy Institute, noting that citizens messaging the number likely lack legal clarity on how their personal information is processed or stored.

Citizens' personal details exposed

Hours after the promotional campaign launched, Topaz Luk posted follow-up footage meant to show the high volume of incoming messages. However, the video publicly exposed the phone numbers, names, and personal messages of over 20 respondents—including at least one minor.

One individual whose contact details were published online expressed dismay after his number began circulating on social media. After messaging the line, he was contacted by an individual claiming to represent the Prime Minister's Office, followed by multiple calls from unauthorized third parties attempting impersonation.

The WhatsApp account tied to the number was temporarily disabled due to the surge of incoming traffic, prompting the campaign to redirect users to Telegram.

Likud’s history of aggressive voter-tracking tools

The phone-line tactic builds upon Likud's history of using specialized digital infrastructure to identify, track, and mobilize potential voters.

Previous campaigns relied heavily on software such as Elector—which allowed party observers to track voting turnout in real time—and automated social media bots to construct detailed voter profiles without explicit consent.

Central Elections Committee Chairman Noam Sohlberg recently banned Elector-like applications inside polling stations on Election Day to prevent unauthorized surveillance during voting.

Furthermore, earlier this month, a Likud-affiliated website allowed users to enter any citizen's national ID number to check their status in the party registry, raising additional alarm over systemic voter privacy breaches.