The Pentagon reportedly requested Twitter “whitelist” dozens of accounts used to run foreign influence operations
According to the report, as far back as 2017, U.S. Central Command requested that Twitter “whitelist” a series of Arab-language accounts the department said they used “to amplify certain messages.” At the time, Twitter had fortified content filters aimed at identifying and removing content associated with terrorist groups based in the Middle East, including ISIS. Military-run accounts that frequently engaged with the content were being caught in their filtration and visibility reduction systems.
Several of the accounts’ content focused on promoting and framing U.S. military activity in the Middle East. While some accounts disclosed their affiliation with the U.S. government, The Intercept found that others deleted their disclosures at some point. According to former employees speaking under condition of anonymity, the “whitelist” internal tag applied to these accounts essentially gave them all of the benefits of verification, without a visible verification tag on the account.
At least one account identified by The Intercept as whitelisted in CENTCOM’s initial 2017 request was identified inas an account using a deep fake as a profile image, and that was part of a vast state-backed online influence operation. The account, “@mktashif,” purported to be an unbiased news account “dedicated to serving Iraqis and Arabs.” The account was created using a CENTCOM-affiliated email.
Twitter’s cooperation with national security agencies running propaganda operations on the platform, contradicts Twitter’s long-held stance on foreign influence operations. In a 2020, Twitter spokesperson Nick Pickles stated that the platform’s goal was “to remove bad-faith actors and to advance public understanding of these critical topics.
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