WASHINGTON (AP) — The Central Intelligence Agency offered help to potential informants in Iran on Tuesday, providing Farsi-language instructions on ways to safely contact the U.S. spy agency as President Donald Trump mulls possible military strikes.
The post is the latest in a series of recruitment pitches in Farsi, Korean, Russian and Mandarin that offered secure ways to contact the CIA. The Farsi-language message posted Tuesday to X, Instagram and YouTube, however, comes at an especially uneasy time in U.S.-Iran relations and as the Iranian theocracy faces new protests at home.
The U.S. has assembled its largest military force in the Mideast in decades as tensions with Iran have risen. Trump threatened military action in January in response to the government’s fierce crackdown on national protests before shifting his focus to Iran’s disputed nuclear program and warning it to make a deal. Another round of nuclear talks is planned for later this week.
In a sign of new unrest in Iran, students held anti-government protests at universities in Tehran on Monday.
“Hello. The Central Intelligence Agency hears you and wants to help,” the agency wrote in the message, according to an English translation. “Here are some tips on how to make a secure virtual call with us.”
The Farsi-language post racked up millions of views within just a few hours.
The agency won’t disclose details about the new tips or sources that resulted from earlier recruitment videos, but Director John Ratcliffe has said the posts are having an impact.
“Last year, CIA’s Mandarin video campaign reached many Chinese citizens, and we know there are many more searching for a way to improve their lives and change their country for the better,” Ratcliffe said earlier this month when a new Mandarin video was posted.
The CIA’s tips include using a virtual private network, or VPN, to circumvent internet restrictions and surveillance, and the use of a disposable device that can’t easily be traced back to the user. The CIA also urged potential informants to use private web browsers and to delete their internet history to cover their tracks.
The instructions include ways to reach the CIA on its public website or on the darknet, a part of the internet that can only be accessed using special tools designed to hide the user’s identity. The CIA has also posted similar instructions in Russian.
A spokesperson for Iran’s Mission to the United Nations did not immediately respond to a message seeking comment about the new video.
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Associated Press writer Farnoush Amiri contributed to this report from New York.
