Some articles published online by the Swiss Broadcasting Corporation (SBC) and other Swiss news outlets have disappeared, thanks to an e-reputation company called Eliminalia that caters to criminals and corrupt politicians, a global disinformation investigation reveals.
Confidential documents seen by journalists at Swiss public television RTSExternal link show that thousands of investigative stories published by media worldwide have been erased or made invisible on the internet.
Spanish-owned reputation management firm Eliminalia, which promises to “eliminate your past [and] help you with your future”, has dozens of offices worldwide, including three in Switzerland. Although it claims to use legal methods to delete photos or negative comments for clients who say they’ve been victims of “unjustified” online attacks, the reality is different, RTS reports.
The list of Eliminalia clients seen by RTS, one of 30 news organisations taking part in a global investigation on disinformation campaigns led by the French NGO Forbidden Stories, include convicted sex traffickers, arms dealers, fraudsters and even former torturers from Chile. Of over 1,500 clients worldwide, RTS identified 43 in Switzerland. Several are Italian nationals living in the southern canton of Ticino hoping to clear their names from the mafia business in Italy. Others are people involved in tax evasion or cryptocurrency scams. One is a circus performer recently convicted of sexual assault on a minor. Clients can pay up to hundreds of thousands of francs for Eliminalia’s services.
More
More
The dark side of Zug’s Crypto Valley
This content was published on
What role has Switzerland’s Crypto Valley played in the Bitfinex cryptocurrency exchange scandal?
The “right to be forgotten rule” in the European Union and to ask search engines to remove information can be justified in certain cases, according to Sébastien Fanti, a digital law expert.
“A youthful mistake [or] a teenager’s stupidity should not follow a person all his or her life on the internet,” Fanti told RTS. “With Eliminalia, it’s not about the ‘right to be forgotten’. It erases the investigative work of journalists [and] erases the truth. This company is a digital hitman.”
Eliminalia says it can erase any news article online. According to the global investigative consortium, articles from Le Monde, Vice News, as well as from Swiss media, including the SBC (the parent company of SWI swissinfo.ch), Local.ch and 24 Heures, have been deleted using various methods. One is the “drowning” technique, which involves using hundreds of fake online media with names like CNN News Today or Taiwan Times to post glowing articles about clients. While these fake stories land at the top of Google search results, authentic stories get drowned out. Eliminania also has a technique to get search engines to remove authentic articles from their sites.
The company did not respond to the consortium’s request for comment, instead sending the reporters a letter threatening legal action. Information on its wealthy founder, Diego “Didac” Sanchez, was scarce online, with the exception of glowing articles and videos – probably, RTS speculates, because he uses his own company’s services to scrub his past.
Popular Stories
More
Climate change
The international consequences of a glacier-free Switzerland
Is your place of origin, your Heimatort, important to you?
Every Swiss citizen has a Heimatort, a place of origin, but many have never visited theirs. What’s your relationship with your Heimatort? What does it mean to you?
What factors should be taken into account when inheriting Swiss citizenship abroad?
Should there be a limit to the passing on of Swiss citizenship? Or is the current practice too strict and it should still be possible to register after the age of 25?
‘Pressure will increase on Switzerland to invest more in defence’
This content was published on
Markus Mäder, Switzerland's state secretary for security policy, believes that more cooperation is needed in order to strengthen defence in Europe.
Just one in five Swiss attend a religious service at Easter
This content was published on
Only one in five people in Switzerland attend a religious service during the Easter period or give up meat or alcohol for at least one day of fasting. Around 25% of those polled see Easter primarily as a family holiday, according to the survey.
Major road disruptions continue after heavy snowfall in parts of Switzerland
This content was published on
The snowfall has ended in the southern Swiss canton of Valais, the cantonal emergency services said on Friday. Several roads, however, remain closed.
Swiss businessman gets prison term for asbestos deaths
This content was published on
Stephan Schmidheiny has been sentenced to 9 years and 6 months in prison by the Turin Court of Appeal in a case against the former Eternit executive over deaths linked to asbestos exposure in Italy.
This content was published on
Swiss imports and exports reached new heights in the first quarter, driven by the chemicals and pharmaceuticals sectors. Shipments to the US rose sharply.
This content was published on
Disinformation has proved a powerful weapon in the Ukraine war. What's fuelling this digital assault on truth and what can be done about it?
Switzerland and Italy to step up anti-mafia cooperation
This content was published on
Top Swiss and Italian prosecutors have agreed to strengthen cooperation to fight mafia activity, which is on the rise in Switzerland.
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.