Company led by former Israeli intelligence officer offered to pay UK journalists

A company managed by Assaf Kaplan, a former Israeli intelligence officer from Unit 8200, is offering money to journalists in the United Kingdom.

According to a report in Declassified, earlier this summer, a journalist named Amun Bains received an unusual message on TikTok.

The message came from an account called Good News Britain, which stated it was working with a group called The Amplifiers to build a “network of digital producers who counter the online far-right.”

Bains was told that The Amplifiers wanted to “work with producers who can cut through the noise with progressive content and counter the division and disinformation spread by the far-right.”

In exchange for sharing at least five “progressive” videos on her social media accounts, she would receive £50 per week and potential bonuses.

Bains gave her email address to Good News Britain and was soon contacted by The Amplifiers to arrange a meeting.

However, after the meeting, Bains realized that The Amplifiers was managed by a little-known digital communications agency called 411.

She became even more concerned when she learned that Assaf Kaplan, a former Israeli intelligence officer from Unit 8200, was one of the company’s directors and had been present in the meeting.

411 was founded last September by former Labour Party officials who describe themselves as “the team behind the historic 2024 general election victory.” It takes its name from the number of seats won by Keir Starmer’s party.

Documents obtained by Declassified show how 411 recruited journalists and influencers to publish content criticizing Reform UK and supporting the Labour Party’s political objectives.

411 does not want the public to know who is sponsoring the content and requires participants to sign a non-disclosure agreement before joining The Amplifiers.

This information raises concerns that a digital communications company linked to the Labour Party may be trying to shape public opinion without the knowledge or consent of the British public.

411 claims this work is not connected to the Labour Party but refuses to disclose who is funding The Amplifiers project and for what purpose.

A Labour Party spokesperson told Declassified, “We do not comment on confidential agreements with any contractors.”

During their meeting, Kaplan and 411’s senior manager, Caitlin Otway, promised to send Bains a “Statement of Work” outlining future collaboration with The Amplifiers.

However, the 411 team accidentally sent Bains their onboarding script for new hires. The script stated, “We are very excited that you are interested in joining our new network of content creators. Our overall goal is to fill the internet with smart, engaging, and progressive short-form content.”

The text continued by explaining what the job would entail: The Amplifiers would send influencers a weekly brief on topics to focus on.

The brief given to Bains would include “suggested narratives, key moments from the news, short articles or clips to work from, or just a tone or theme to explore.”

These themes would include topics beneficial to the Labour Party, such as “Nigel Farage is not on your side, Immigration, improvements in the NHS, etc.”

Journalists would receive £50 for producing at least five videos per week, but it was stated that they would also “reward standout contributions after a period of work.”

As the project grew, the script added that high-performing creators would have “opportunities for broader roles and higher pay in future phases.”

Shortly after, Bains was sent the correct Statement of Work document, which emphasized the importance of confidentiality.

The document stated, “The Freelancer agrees to maintain the confidentiality of all sensitive information shared by 411 under the NDA [Non-Disclosure Agreement] Contractor Agreement. All work created under this agreement will be the intellectual property of 411 unless otherwise agreed in writing.”

Bains was also sent the Non-Disclosure Agreement, which included instructions to destroy all confidential information related to The Amplifiers “upon request.”

The company’s strategic director, Caitlin Chalmers, served as the Labour Party’s Head of Digital Advertising between 2022 and 2024, while Kaplan was hired as the party’s Head of Social Listening and Organising in January 2021.

Kaplan is a former member of Israel’s Unit 8200, the controversial spyware arm of the IDF, which has been implicated in illegal surveillance and blackmail operations against Palestinians.

According to his LinkedIn page, which was discovered by Electronic Intifada but later deleted, Kaplan served in the military intelligence division of the Israeli army from May 2009 to November 2013.