Upon the investigation launched by the İstanbul Chief Prosecutor’s Office a lawsuit was filed against 10 journalists for “membership in a terrorist organisation [FETÖ]” allegedly using ByLock app. Ömer Faruk Aydemir (former Chief of Information of İhlas News Agency News), Sait Gürkan Tuzlu (correspondent of now-closed Cihan News Agency), Mesut Ertaç (the former reporter for now closed Zaman ve Cihan news agency), Muhsin Pilgir (correspondents of now-closed Zaman newspaper and Cihan News Agency), Mehmet Ali Ay, Yusuf Duran, Ahmet Feyzullah Özyurt, Murat Özay (Cihan News Agency), Hüdaverdi Yıldırım (Can Erzincan TV), Yasir Kaya (the former news director for Fenerbahçe TV), Cüneyt Seza Özkan (the editor for Samanyolu TV Channel) have been standing trial.
All were arrested on August 16, 2017.