Revealed: leaked files show how Ericsson allegedly helped bribe Islamic State

Confidential documents have revealed how the telecoms giant Ericsson is alleged to have helped pay bribes to the Islamic State terrorist group in order to continue selling its services after the militants seized control of large parts of Iraq.

The leak of internal investigations at Ericsson, which also found that the firm had put its contractors at risk and allowed them to be kidnapped by the militants, is potentially damaging for the multinational.

In addition to the findings about the alleged payments to IS, the investigations uncovered allegations the company was involved in corruption in at least 10 countries across four continents.

That would suggest a pattern of wrongdoing by Ericsson that is far wider than what the telecoms giant publicly admitted to in 2019, when it entered into a $1bn (£750m) settlement with the US Department of Justice (DoJ).

Ericsson, which is headquartered in Stockholm, employs 100,000 people and sells telecoms equipment in 180 countries. It plays a leading role in developing the next generation of 5G mobile phone technology in the UK.

Since then the telecoms firm has been bracing for the full disclosure of the reports, which were leaked to the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) which then shared them with media partners including the BBC, the Washington Post and the Guardian.

The leaked documents, running to 101 pages, were produced in 2019 and 2020. They record the results of internal investigations commissioned by Ericsson into alleged corruption by the company around the world.