Why MI6 Is Now on Instagram
There are two reasons that MI6 - also known as the British Secret Intelligence Service - now has its own Instagram account.
Fittingly for an agency that works in the shadows, both reasons are not easily perceivable at first sight.
And while the much has been written (and also said) about the surprise move, we should not kid ourselves.
It has a very serious goal.
At first glance, the appearance of MI6 on one of the most popular social media platform seems to herald a desire for more transparency and positive perception.
Far more than a website or even a LinkedIn page, Instagram is the platform where people of all ages go to “see and feel.” The graphic and video heavy nature of the content makes it an ideal medium to “show and tell” - and obviously (based on MI6’s first post) that is exactly what the British spies intend to do.
But contrary to the most popular perspectives, this is not about “modernizing” the Secret Intelligence Service’s image. It is not about “keeping up with the times.”
It goes much deeper.
Casting a wide net
First of all, MI6 needs more information. In particular, it needs more informants - and more diversified sources of information.
That includes younger people, for sure, but it also includes ad hoc informants who are willing to share information online using secure channels - without ever having to run from dead drop to dead drop.
By building its digital presence, MI6 is spreading its net farther and wider and acknowledging that it does not necessarily need to hold a portfolio of full-time agents on its payroll. Given the sophistication of data gathering it is possible to verify information submitted online - even if the source and the recipient have never met.
This approach mirrors that of journalists who, although they may have a network of stable contacts in various places, far more often rely on ad hoc interactions to collect information on the topic at hand.
MI6’s digital push is also a nod to the growing power of open-source intelligence.
What started out in the mid of the last century over old-fashioned radio and broadcast networks, with gigantic amounts of legwork and analogue reporting is now a vast science fuelled by conflicts in the Middle East and most recently Ukraine.
If an established spy agency can effectively tap into the vast numbers of curious minds with smartphones at critical locations and in critical organizations around the globe - well, it will have hit a gold mine.
Ready to influence - digitally
The second reason MI6 is on Instagram is more subtle. And potentially controversial.
For decades, movie goers have seen James Bond, the most famous MI6 officer ever, running around the world on missions of national importance. In this fabulous fiction, a spy’s job is to stop bad guys with a gun or a bomb - or if required, an special Omega Seamaster watch.
But the weapons of war and especially spy warfare today are not always physical. They are also informational.
Instead of simply taking in data, analysing it and then selectively chasing down threats, spies today are employed to wage large-scale propaganda campaigns. They sometimes influence elections or businesses in the public arena.
Sometimes their handiwork is very visible - other times it is harder to spot.
Controlling naratives and influencing public opinion - at scale - is something that only the advent of the internet and especially social media has enabled.
And where does that happen?
Quite often - on channels like Instagram.
So while MI6 might employ digitally-affine graphic designers and videographers to create slick reals - it is more likely than not that this friendly foray into the social media space will also be accompanied by deeper efforts to both mine information online - and plant some too.
In other words - there will be shaking and stirring…