A division of the U.S. Postal Service that investigates illegal mail activities has quietly operated a program that monitors Americans’ social media posts, according to a government document published by Yahoo News.
According to the US Postal Inspection Service, the Internet Covert Operations Program (iCOP), one of the seven law enforcers of the USPS, is one of the seven groups dealing with cybercrime, according to the US Postal Inspection Service. other illegal activities related to drugs, fraud and violent crime. But in the description, it is said that the group is also watching social media sites for ‘inflamed’ posts, including messages about planned protests.
“Analysts with the Internet Covert Operations Program (iCOP) of the United States Postal Inspection Service (USPIS)’s Internet Covert Operations Program have monitored significant activity regarding planned protests that took place internationally and domestically on March 20, 2021,” a government bulletin of March 16 said to be ‘sensitive to law enforcement’ and disseminated by the Department of Homeland Security. “Places and times have been identified for these protests, which are spread online across various social media platforms, to include right-leaning Parler and Telegram accounts.”
The bulletin apparently refers to marches around the global rally for freedom and democracy, when protesters around the world protested against the restrictions on the closure of the coronavirus.
“Parler users commented on their intention to use the rallies to commit violence. Image 3 on the right is a screenshot of Parler indicating that two users discussed the event as an opportunity to have a ‘fight’ and to ’cause serious harm,’ ‘The bulletin said that “no intelligence is available to suggest the legitimacy of these threats.”
The bulletin contains screenshots of posts from Facebook, Parler and Telegram, including one by a suspected member of the Proud Boys.
“iCOP analysts are currently monitoring social media channels for possible threats arising from the scheduled protests and will distribute intelligence updates as needed,” the bulletin said.
Post Office processed by Yahoo News
Experts on civil liberties have expressed concern about the collection of posts on social media by the Postal Service.
“I do not understand why the government is going to the Postal Service to investigate the internet for security issues,” said Geoffrey Stone, a law professor at the University of Chicago, who was quoted by former president as saying. Barack Obama has been appointed to review the National Security Agency’s metadata collection. told Yahoo News.
“It seems a bit bizarre,” added Rachel Levinson-Waldman, deputy director of the Brennan Center for Justice’s Freedom and National Security Program. “Based on the very minimal information available online, it appears that [iCOP] is intended to eradicate the abuse of the postal system by online actors, which apparently does not include what is going on here. It is not at all clear why their mandate will include monitoring social media that is not related to the use of the mail system. “
Levinson-Waldman also raised questions about the legality of the program.
“If the individuals monitoring them are carrying out or planning criminal activities, it should be the FBI,” she said. “If they are merely using legally protected speech, even if it is heinous or offensive, it could be a serious concern based on these constitutional concerns.”
The USPIS told Yahoo News that its mission is to “protect the US Postal Service and its employees, infrastructure and customers; uphold the laws defending the country’s e-mail system against illegal or dangerous use; and the trust of the public in the post. “
“The Internet Covert Operations program is a function within the U.S. Postal Inspection Service that assesses threats to employees of the postal service and its infrastructure by monitoring public information about public resources,” the USPIS said in a statement, adding that it collaborate with other law enforcers. agencies to “identify and assess potential threats to the Postal Service, its employees and customers and its overall mail processing and transportation network.”
The report noted that the USPIS is not the only agency monitoring social media posts in the wake of the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol.
“We know that this threat is fueled primarily by false narratives, conspiracy theories and extremist rhetoric read by social media and other online platforms,” a Department of Homeland Security official told reporters in a recent press call. “And that’s why we start engaging directly with social media businesses.”
The official added that the department is working with ‘colleagues on civil rights and civil liberties, as well as our private colleagues, to ensure that everything we do is done responsibly and in accordance with civil rights and civil liberties and individual privacy.’
Stone said other agencies are better equipped to handle such oversight than the USPIS.
“I just do not think the postal service has the degree of refinement you would want if you were dealing with such security issues,” he told Yahoo News. “The part is enigmatic. There are so many other federal agencies that can do it, I do not understand why the post office would do it. The post office does not have to do it – you have FBI, Homeland Security and so on, so I do not know why the post office is doing this. ‘
The report comes amid a growing debate over the value, legality and necessity of social media surveillance. Democratic lawmakers have sued the FBI and federal law enforcement agencies for failing to respond to public calls for violence at the Capitol on social media platforms ahead of the January 6 riot.
“This information, which will be seen on the internet before January 6, paints a clear picture of a planned and coordinated violent attack,” said sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, DR.I., told NBC News. “It’s important to understand how much of this the FBI and DOJ knew, when they knew it and how they decided which pieces of information justified action.”
The FBI field office in Norfolk, Virginia, did issue a warning to Capitol police and DC Metropolitan police on January 5 that online extremists on their way to Washington were ready for ‘war’. However, Robert Contee, acting DC police chief, said at a recent congressional hearing that the intelligence had not been ‘fully verified. Neither Contee nor the then police chief, Steven Sund, saw the bulletin.
The FBI and the Department of Justice have stressed that such intelligence cannot be operated frequently and that many posts are anonymous.
But since the Jan. 6 assault, the FBI has relied on social media reports to track down hundreds of people who stormed the Capitol. The FBI has detected one suspected riot using facial recognition technology that found a photo of him on his girlfriend’s Instagram page, HuffPost reported Wednesday. Investigators also used license plate readers and cell records of cell towers to track down the insurgents, according to The Washington Post.
The use of social media and facial recognition has upset some civil liberties groups.
“Whenever you see this technology used on someone you dislike, remember that it is also used in a social movement that supports you,” said Evan Greer, director of the Digital Rights Promotion Group. Fight for the Future, told The Washington Post. “Occasionally, this technology gets used to bad people doing really bad things. But the rest of the time, it’s used on all of us, in a way that’s very cool for freedom of expression.”