CIA launches Instagram with an 'eye spy' picture

Agency opens account with cryptic photo as it aims to tap into tech-savvy next generation. Photo / Instagram

The CIA has come in from the social media cold, joining Hollywood stars and celebrities on Instagram.

America's spy agency made its first foray on the picture-based network with a cryptic photograph of a cluttered desk, accompanied by the caption "I spy with my little eye..."

On the desk, believed to be located inside CIA headquarters in Langley, Virginia, were objects associated with espionage including a "burn bag" for getting rid of secret documents, an Arabic notebook, a wig, foreign bank notes and a container marked "top secret pulp". The agency invited people to decipher the meaning of the items.

The photo immediately sent amateur Instagram sleuths into a frenzy. Most quickly picked up on the symbolism of a clock reading 8.46am - the moment the first plane hit the World Trade Center on 9/11. And hanging from the chair is a security badge, which, on closer inspection, carries an old photograph of Gina Haspel, the CIA director.

Instagram, owned by Facebook, has more than a billion users. Among the most followed are Kim Kardashian, Beyoncé, Ariana Grande, and Cristiano Ronaldo, each of whom has in excess of 100 million followers.

The CIA joined Instagram to attract a new generation of agents and analysts. A spokesman said: "We're looking to spark the curiosity of Instagram's users about the many ways CIA's global mission has us going where others cannot go and doing what others cannot do.

"Instagram is another way we're sharing stories and recruiting talented Americans.

"Through the Instagram account we'll give a peek into agency life but we can't promise any selfies from secret locations."

As social media networks have proliferated, intelligence agencies have had to work out how to deal with them. The networks have been used by criminals and terrorists, and by foreign powers to undermine elections.

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I spy with my little eye...

A post shared by Central Intelligence Agency (@cia) on Apr 25, 2019 at 7:34am PDT

The Internet Research Agency, a Kremlin-linked Russian troll farm in St Petersburg, targeted the 2016 US presidential election on Instagram, operating fake accounts that garnered hundreds of thousands of followers.

While social media has become a source of intelligence, the CIA and other agencies face a dilemma over whether to create their own accounts, balancing the boosting of their public profile against the need for secrecy.

In 2014 the CIA joined Facebook and Twitter. Its first tweet read: "We can neither confirm nor deny that this is our first tweet." That account now has 2.6 million followers.

The CIA Instagram account quickly amassed tens of thousands of followers and attracted a flood of replies.

Many praised the CIA for its work, while others criticised the agency and its techniques.

Replies came in numerous languages, including Russian.

The account did not list any others that the CIA was following. One Instagram user wrote:

"Don't believe that, they're following everyone."

A spokesman for Instagram said: "Our team worked with the CIA, as they do with many partners, to provide best practices and guidance when it comes to launching an Instagram account."

The FBI is already on Instagram, posting photographs including agents undergoing weapons training. The US Secret Service also shares images of its canine contingent, and the US Transportation Security Administration publishes pictures of objects it has confiscated at airports.