Israel's internal security agency on Monday accused Iran of using a fake Facebook profile to try and get Israelis to collect information and harm people in their country.
Shin Bet's allegation comes days after Israel claimed that Iran had plotted to assassinate an Israeli diplomat in Turkey, as global powers seek to revive a nuclear deal with Tehran.
According to the Shin Bet, the profile of a young Jewish-Canadian woman called Sara Puppi with ties in Israel was fake and belonged to an Iranian agent using the social network to befriend primarily Israelis.
After contact was made, Puppi would use the WhatsApp messaging app to try and persuade her new friends "to gather information on Israeli figures while gauging their willingness to harm them, using pressure and promising thousands of dollars", the Shin Bet said.
"Emotional and romantic manipulations were also used," the agency added in a statement.
It said that Shin Bet agents had posed as "friends" of Puppi -- whose account had more than 2,000 friends before disappearing on Monday -- and received a Bitcoin payment from her.
"The Iranian operative behind the account used a business cover story to give various missions," the Shin Bet said.
Puppi expressed a will to harm "business representatives and diplomats from Arab countries operating in Israel", it said.
Those behind the account also tried to damage Israel's ties with Russia by encouraging people to criticize Russian President Vladimir Putin over the Ukraine war, the Shin Bet said.
The Shin Bet told AFP they could link the account to Iran with intelligence they obtained.
The Shin Bet called on Israelis to exercise vigilance and caution given the threat posed by various terrorists on social media, and to inform the Israeli police of any suspicious activity.
