Eitanium Ltd Chart: Erik Prince and directors and their network of cyber surveillance related companies
Eitanium Ltd, incorporated in Cyprus in 2019, has two directors who are a few degrees of separation from NSO Group and two directors who had prior significant business with Russian arms and construction companies.
Note: This chart was created with @ktskts11 who first reported on Eitanium Ltd and with helpful input from Robert Young Pelton. Sources for data in the chart is provided below. The chart my be updated periodically and changes noted below.
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This chart was created to show the interconnections among people involved in a vast network of cyber surveillance and related companies. There is no indication of any wrongdoing by any of the people or entities displayed. Cyber technology and surveillance companies like these often work closely with military and governmental organizations around the world. Many of the same names continue to show up in these corporate networks and it’s important to shed light on the people developing and selling surveillance-related tools.
Eitanium Ltd was incorporated on December 31, 2019 in Cyprus with Michael Yudelson as Director and Secretary and on November 23, 2020 four directors were appointed: Eric Banoun, Magomed Bilalov, Eran Karpen and Erik Dean Prince. The shareholder ownership in the chart is based on issued capital reported in filings from the Cyprus registry as of February 2021.
The chart above expands upon information in this February Twitter thread:
At the time, I noted that there was little known about Eitanium and no evidence it was connected to a similarly named company on a Thai website. However, additional research done with @ktskts11 has revealed multiple links that indicate that the Eitanium Cyber Solutions displayed as a partner of M&M Innotech is related to Cyprus incorporated Eitanium Ltd.
The M&M Innotech website displays five companies under the ‘Global Partners’ and the ‘Solutions&Services’ tabs: D-Fend, Sensority, Metis, Simplex-Mapping and Eitanium Cyber Solutions. One director of Cyprus incorporated Eitanium Ltd, Eric Banoun, and shareholder Colibri Technologies, are linked to D-Fend and Simplex Mapping, two of the partners listed below.
Colibri Technologies is also listed as ‘official’ (or investor) for two companies that Erik Prince and his associates are closely affiliated with — Agent Video Intelligence and Carbyne Ltd.
Eitanium Ltd directors Eran Karpan and Eric Banoun both have connections with NSO Group.
A 2016 Haaretz article says “Omri Lavie, Shalev Hulio and Niv Carmi founded NSO in 2009, naming it from the initials of their first names.” and describes how Lavie and Hulio started many companies together, founding their second start-up, CommuniTake around 2008. They reportedly left shortly afterwards following disputes with their co-founders and then founded NSO. A patent filed in October 2016 and assigned to CommuniTake lists Eran Karpen, Omri Lavie, Shalev Holy, showing more recent interaction.
Eric Banoun co-founded Circles which is owned by OSY Technologies, a part of NSO Group (whose structure has changed over time). A Calcalist article described a deal Elliott Broidy was involved with and how “Banoun joined Circles Technologies as a partner and used his accumulated contact network to market NSO’s technology.” Hong Kong corporate filings show that Banoun is a co-owner of Colibri Technologies, which as noted earlier is affiliated with D-Fend, Simplex Mapping, Agent Video Intelligence and Carbyne Ltd.
Terry DiVittorio who is the General Manager, North America at D-Fend Solutions, was previously the President of Westbridge Technologies, which is described on his LinkedIn page as “the US affiliate of Q Cyber Technologies.”
The U.S. government contract website lists a contract signed October 2020 with D-Fend Inc. for $314,500. The contracting agency was the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and the description is “electronic countermeasures, counter-countermeasures and quick reaction capability equipment.” A February 2020 press release on D-Fend’s website announced that “D-Fend Solutions, a leading counter-drone solution provider, announced today that the Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) selected the EnforceAir c-UAS system as the core Radio Frequency system for integration into a Counter Drone system.”
A November 2019 press release “D-Fend Solutions Assures U.S. National Security Against the Increasing Threat of Rogue Drones” says the D-Fend product is exclusively marketed in the U.S by ELTA North America, part of Israel Aerospace Industries. It’s possible that D-Fend has other sub-contracts in addition to the one for $314,500 through its partnership with ELTA.
In 2016 Michael Flynn joined the advisory board of OSY Technologies and “was paid a little more than $40,000 by OSY, and “less than $100,000” by Francisco” (Franciso was the owner until 2017).
Michael Yudelson, was an officer of Russian Armament LLC , incorporated in Arkansas in 2012 and now dissolved. The company was previously named Thor Global Imports. Note that there is a BVI incorporated Thor Global Enterprises that is affiliated with associates of Erik Prince, but there is no apparent links between the two companies.
Around 2015 Yudelson launched an Austrian arms company called FMF Tactical. The company became insolvent and a successor company called Ritter & Stark was also reportedly insolvent. The owner of FMF Tactical was reported to be Alliance Gaming Sales BV, a company that has casinos in Russia, Ukraine and other locations.
Magomed Bilalov was the owner of a large Russian construction company called Krasnaya Polyana which was described as “the largest construction company of sport facilities for the Sochi Olympics” in 2014. His brother Akhmed Bilalov was the deputy head of the Russian Olympic Committee. However, the brothers both fled Russia in 2013 after being fired, accused of cost overruns and criminally charged.
The OSY Technologies company structure in the chart is largely based on a December 2019 FARA filing by Mercury Public Affairs for work on behalf of Q CyberTechnologies Ltd, which presents the following information:
Note: additional links may be added and the chart may periodically be updated. Please visit my website NewsTRACS where I will publish new content, to view past charts and articles, and to sign up for email notifications for new posts.
