Hackers Leak Moroccan Security Data, Spanish Services Investigate
A group named Jabaroot claims responsibility for publishing personal details of thousands linked to Moroccan intelligence.
AI-assisted coverage comparison, editor-supervised · How this was made
Hackers Leak Moroccan Security Data, Spanish Services Investigate
Photograph: Courrier international (embedded from source)
What this story says
- Hackers identified as Jabaroot published personal data of around 70,000 individuals linked to Moroccan security and intelligence services.
- The leaked information includes names, identification numbers, recruitment dates, and in some cases, rank and banking details.
- Jabaroot claims the leak is retaliation for the assault on Ceuta; Spanish services are investigating and consider the documents 'veridical'.
- At least five members of the Moroccan Embassy in Madrid appear on the leaked lists.
Who covered it
Percentages are shares of the 7 outlets carrying a published leaning rating. 5 of the 12 outlets we know ran this story carry no rating and are not counted in them. Coverage measured .
Trust
42/100
Craft
59/100
Hype
41/100
12 sources · methodology
A hacker group known as Jabaroot has published personal data belonging to approximately 70,000 individuals associated with Moroccan security and intelligence services. The leaked information includes names, identification numbers, recruitment dates, and in some instances, rank and banking details. The Jabaroot group stated that the leak was in retaliation for the assault on Ceuta. Spanish services are investigating the documents and have deemed them 'veridical'.
The data was published on a public Telegram channel. At least five members of the Moroccan Embassy in Madrid appear on the leaked lists. El Confidencial reported that Spanish security agencies are examining the data to identify potential infiltrated agents, translators, or sources within their own services. The publication of this data could compromise many agents, potentially leading to Spanish authorities monitoring their activities within Spain.
Disagreement on hacker identity
Courrier international reported that the group identified as Jabaroot is 'pro-Algerian'. El Debate and El Mundo stated that Jabaroot is a hacker group that has caused a significant blow to Rabat's intelligence after the Ceuta crisis, with El Mundo adding that the hacker is a former Moroccan spy living in Germany. El Confidencial noted that Rabat points to Algeria as its traditional rival in relation to the leak.
What the coverage left out
None of the left-rated or centre-rated digests mention the specific decoration of Abdellatif Hammouchi by Spanish Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska, which was a focus of the right-rated reports.
Still developing. We have re-checked which outlets are covering this 1 time, most recently on 26 Aug 2026, 18:30, and will add the sides that appear.
How each side covered it
Our own reading of the reporting listed below, written from the outlets’ articles rather than quoted from them. The reasoning is set out on our methodology page.
Left
1 rated outlet
- Le Monde reported that hackers from the Jabaroot group published the names of 70,000 security and intelligence officers in Morocco. The digest stated that the leak of personal data was posted on Telegram and that it is said to be the work of five former agents of the Directorate-General for Surveillance of the territory exiled in Europe.
Centre
2 rated outlets
- El Confidencial's full report detailed the significance of the leak, calling it a 'gold mine' for Spanish security services. It noted that the data includes names, identification numbers, recruitment dates, and in some cases, rank and banking details of officials from Morocco's internal intelligence (DGST) and police (DGSN). The outlet reported that Spanish services are investigating the documents and consider them 'veridical', and that at least five members of the Moroccan Embassy in Madrid appear on the lists. El Periódico and elcorreoweb.es, in their digests, focused on Jabaroot as a group of hackers tormenting Moroccan intelligence after the Ceuta crisis.
Right
4 rated outlets
- The right-rated reports highlighted the connection between the leak and the Ceuta crisis, and the Spanish Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska's prior decoration of the head of Moroccan intelligence, Abdellatif Hammouchi. Abc, El Debate, and periodistadigital.com noted that Marlaska decorated Hammouchi, who is linked to the Jabaroot hackers' accusations regarding the Ceuta assault, with the Great Cross of Merit of the Civil Guard. Vozpópuli suggested that Jabaroot's actions are negatively impacting both Sanchez and Mohamed VI, and alluded to Morocco's connection to the Pegasus spyware.
Questions about this coverage
- How did the left and right cover Hackers Leak Moroccan Security Data, Spanish Services Investigate?
- Of the 7 outlets on this story carrying a published leaning rating, 14% are rated left, 29% are rated centre, 57% are rated right. Those percentages are shares of the rated outlets, not of every outlet that ran it, which was 12. The sections above set out what each side emphasised, in its own terms.
- Is Hackers Leak Moroccan Security Data, Spanish Services Investigate left or right?
- Too few of the outlets on this story carry a published leaning rating to say. 7 of them do, and this site does not characterise a field under 12: at that size one newsroom filing moves the share by ten points. The percentages above are the count as it stands.
- Is the coverage of Hackers Leak Moroccan Security Data, Spanish Services Investigate biased?
- Hackers Leak Moroccan Security Data, Spanish Services Investigate is one event reported by 12 outlets, and this page does not rate the story as biased or unbiased. What it publishes is the spread: which outlets ran it, where named rating organisations place each of them on the spectrum, and what each side chose to lead with. A leaning rating describes an outlet's record over time, not this article, and the two should not be run together.
- Which outlets covered Hackers Leak Moroccan Security Data, Spanish Services Investigate?
- 12 that we know of, every one of them listed further up this page with a link to its own report and to what we hold on the publisher. Nothing here is a summary of somebody else's summary: the outlets are named so the original reporting can be read.
- What information was leaked by the Jabaroot hackers?
- The Jabaroot group published personal data of approximately 70,000 individuals linked to Moroccan security and intelligence services. This data includes names, identification numbers, recruitment dates, and in some cases, rank and banking details.
- Why did the Jabaroot group claim to have released the data?
- The Jabaroot group stated that the leak was carried out in retaliation for the assault on Ceuta. This suggests a political motive behind the cyberattack, linking it to a specific event between Morocco and Spain.
- Are the leaked documents considered reliable?
- Yes, Spanish services are investigating the leaked documents and have confirmed that they consider them 'veridical'. This means authorities believe the information contained within the leak is authentic and accurate.
- Does the leak affect the Moroccan Embassy in Madrid?
- Yes, at least five members of the Moroccan Embassy in Madrid appear on the leaked lists. This indicates a potential internal security breach that extends to diplomatic personnel stationed abroad.
Read it at the source
12 outlets, grouped by the leaning a published rating gives them. Every headline links to the original; an underlined outlet name opens our profile of that publisher.
Left
1Centre
2- Who Is Behind Jabaroot, the Group of Algerian Hackers that Torments the Intelligence of Morocco (opens El Periódico in a new tab)
El Periódico — is El Periódico biased? Our profile of this outlet
- A Gold Mine: Why Is the Leaking of the 70,000 Agents of Moroccan Espionage so Important? (opens El Confidencial in a new tab)
El Confidencial — is El Confidencial biased? Our profile of this outletOpinion
Right
4- Marlaska Decorated the Head of Moroccan Intelligence Months Before the Ceuta Crisis (opens ABC in a new tab)
- Jabaroot Bitters Sanchez and Mohamed VI in the Summer (opens Vozpópuli in a new tab)
Vozpópuli — is Vozpópuli biased? Our profile of this outletOpinion
- The Alleged Leader of the Ceuta Assault Was Decorated by Marlaska Ten Months Ago (opens El Debate in a new tab)
- Jabaroot, the Hacker Who Has Caused the Biggest Blow to Rabat's Intelligence After the Ceuta Crisis: "He Is a Former Moroccan Spy Living in Germany" (opens El Mundo in a new tab)
Not rated
5- Pro-Algerian Hackers Publish Data on 70,000 Suspected Moroccan Agents (opens Courrier international in a new tab)
Courrier international — is Courrier international biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Who Is Behind Jabaroot, the Group of Algerian Hackers that Torments the Intelligence of Morocco (opens elcorreoweb.es in a new tab)
elcorreoweb.es — is elcorreoweb.es biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Five "Diplomatics" From the Moroccan Embassy in Madrid Appear in the Archive Filtered by Jabaroot Hackers - ECSAHARAUI (opens ecsaharaui.com in a new tab)
ecsaharaui.com
- The Enemy, at Home: the List of People Linked to Moroccan Intelligence Includes Members of His Embassy in Madrid (opens gaceta.es in a new tab)
- Lying Marlaska Decorated Ten Months Ago the 'Architect' of the Assault on Ceuta (opens periodistadigital.com in a new tab)
periodistadigital.com — is periodistadigital.com biased? Our profile of this outletOpinion
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