The Resurfacing of Medovie: Unpacking a Skincare Company’s Troubling ties to Spyware and a Network of Shell Companies
(Image: A screenshot of Medovie’s website,which resumed operations earlier in 2025.)
The digital landscape is littered with companies that promise rejuvenation and wellness. But sometimes,the surface hides a far more complex – and concerning – reality. Recently, the website for Medovie, a skincare company, quietly came back online after a period of inactivity. while presenting itself as a provider of solutions for chronic skin conditions, a deeper investigation reveals a web of connections to a notorious spyware developer, Intellexa, and a network of shell companies spanning multiple countries. This isn’t just a story about skincare; it’s a cautionary tale about opacity, potential surveillance, and the lengths to which individuals and companies will go to obscure their activities.
As a cybersecurity and investigative journalist with over 15 years of experience tracking the proliferation of surveillance technology,I’ve seen this pattern before. The seemingly innocuous front, the complex corporate structures, the intentional lack of openness – these are all hallmarks of operations attempting to operate in the shadows. Let’s unpack what we certainly know about Medovie, its resurgence, and the individuals pulling the strings.
From Predator Spyware to Portuguese Shores: The Intellexa Connection
Medovie’s current operations are channeled through a Portuguese company, MDV Skin Care.However,the ownership trail quickly leads to Sylwia Jastrzebska,a 26-year-old Polish citizen. This isn’t a random appointment. Jastrzebska was previously listed as a director of cytrox, a North Macedonian company sanctioned by the U.S. for developing “Predator,” the spyware created by Intellexa. Predator is a notably hazardous tool, capable of complete remote access and control of a target’s mobile phone - essentially turning it into a pocket-sized surveillance device.The story behind Cytrox is particularly unsettling. Prior to Jastrzebska’s appointment, the listed director was a 70-year-old Czech pensioner who claimed to have never heard of the company. A Czech reporter’s visit to her home revealed a startling truth: her name had been used without her knowledge.This highlights a common tactic used to mask true ownership and control.
Intellexa itself was founded by Tal Dilian, a former commander of an elite Israeli intelligence unit. The company subsequently recruited other veterans of Israeli intelligence, leveraging their expertise in the development and deployment of elegant surveillance technologies. In 2024, the U.S. sanctioned Intellexa and its key figures, citing the use of Predator spyware to surveil American officials, journalists, and policy experts – a clear indication of the potential for abuse.Privacy Policies and Evasive responses: What Medovie Says vs. What it does
Medovie’s privacy policy adds another layer of concern. It states the company shares client data with other entities within the “Medovie Group,” located in Israel, Cyprus, and Switzerland. This raises immediate questions: who are these companies? What data is being shared? And for what purpose?
When confronted with these questions by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) and the Portuguese publication Expresso, Medovie offered a remarkably simplistic response: the firm “is – and has always been – a skincare company” and doesn’t share personal data. This denial, however, directly contradicts its own stated privacy policy. Furthermore, the spokesperson refused to answer specific questions about the Medovie Group’s composition, the involvement of Dilian or Hamou (presumably a reference to a key figure in the Intellexa network), or the reasons for the company’s relocation to Portugal.
This lack of transparency is a significant red flag. Legitimate businesses typically readily provide data about their operations and data handling practices.
A Network of Connections: Levy, Douro Dynamics, and the Sephardic Route
The connections don’t stop with Jastrzebska and Intellexa. Jastrzebska also serves as president of the board of Douro Dynamics,a Warsaw-based company owned by Amos Levy,an Israeli-Portuguese businessman.Levy, in turn, incorporated a Portuguese company called Odyssey in the Sky in June 2024, which he then used to acquire a Cyprus-based company from Dilian.This intricate network suggests a deliberate effort to consolidate assets and obscure financial flows. Levy’s acquisition of Portuguese citizenship through