OEV was discussed last year at a gathering of electronic warfare specialists in Washington DC, where a senior Centcom officer told delegates that its purpose was to "communicate critical messages and to counter the propaganda of our adversaries".
Reddit is software pro world legit mod#
The MoD refused to say whether it had been involved in the development of persona management programmes, saying: "We don't comment on cyber capability." In his evidence to the Senate committee, Gen Mattis said: "OEV seeks to disrupt recruitment and training of suicide bombers deny safe havens for our adversaries and counter extremist ideology and propaganda." He added that Centcom was working with "our coalition partners" to develop new techniques and tactics the US could use "to counter the adversary in the cyber domain".Īccording to a report by the inspector general of the US defence department in Iraq, OEV was managed by the multinational forces rather than Centcom.Īsked whether any UK military personnel had been involved in OEV, Britain's Ministry of Defence said it could find "no evidence". Nobody was available for comment at Ntrepid. It would not disclose whether the multiple persona project is already in operation or discuss any related contracts. This month Petraeus's successor, General James Mattis, told the same committee that OEV " supports all activities associated with degrading the enemy narrative, including web engagement and web-based product distribution capabilities".Ĭentcom confirmed that the $2.76m contract was awarded to Ntrepid, a newly formed corporation registered in Los Angeles. He said the US military's objective was to be "first with the truth". In evidence to the US Senate's armed services committee last year, General David Petraeus, then commander of Centcom, described the operation as an effort to " counter extremist ideology and propaganda and to ensure that credible voices in the region are heard". OEV is seen by senior US commanders as a vital counter-terrorism and counter-radicalisation programme. Since then, OEV is reported to have expanded into a $200m programme and is thought to have been used against jihadists across Pakistan, Afghanistan and the Middle East. The multiple persona contract is thought to have been awarded as part of a programme called Operation Earnest Voice (OEV), which was first developed in Iraq as a psychological warfare weapon against the online presence of al-Qaida supporters and others ranged against coalition forces. It also calls for "traffic mixing", blending the persona controllers' internet usage with the usage of people outside Centcom in a manner that must offer "excellent cover and powerful deniability". Details of the contract suggest this location would be MacDill air force base near Tampa, Florida, home of US Special Operations Command.Ĭentcom's contract requires for each controller the provision of one "virtual private server" located in the United States and others appearing to be outside the US to give the impression the fake personas are real people located in different parts of the world.
Once developed, the software could allow US service personnel, working around the clock in one location, to respond to emerging online conversations with any number of co-ordinated messages, blogposts, chatroom posts and other interventions.
The languages in which the interventions are conducted include Arabic, Farsi, Urdu and Pashto.Ĭentcom said it was not targeting any US-based web sites, in English or any other language, and specifically said it was not targeting Facebook or Twitter. He said none of the interventions would be in English, as it would be unlawful to "address US audiences" with such technology, and any English-language use of social media by Centcom was always clearly attributed. The Centcom contract stipulates that each fake online persona must have a convincing background, history and supporting details, and that up to 50 US-based controllers should be able to operate false identities from their workstations "without fear of being discovered by sophisticated adversaries".Ĭentcom spokesman Commander Bill Speaks said: "The technology supports classified blogging activities on foreign-language websites to enable Centcom to counter violent extremist and enemy propaganda outside the US." The discovery that the US military is developing false online personalities – known to users of social media as "sock puppets" – could also encourage other governments, private companies and non-government organisations to do the same. Critics are likely to complain that it will allow the US military to create a false consensus in online conversations, crowd out unwelcome opinions and smother commentaries or reports that do not correspond with its own objectives.
Reddit is software pro world legit free#
The project has been likened by web experts to China's attempts to control and restrict free speech on the internet.
0 kommentar(er)
