The seal of the Central Intelligence Agency is shown at the entrance of the CIA headquarters in McLean, Virginia, U.S., September 24, 2022.
Evelyn Hockstein | Reuters
The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) has issued a rare call to Iranians to get in contact as potential informants, signaling a potential ramp-up of American efforts to gather military and civilian intelligence at a time of heightened tensions between the U.S. and Iran.
The CIA issued a Farsi-language recruitment post on X, Instagram and YouTube on Tuesday, offering potential informants a way to contact the agency to share intelligence securely.
“Hello. The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) hears your voice and wants to help you,” the post said, according to an English-language translation, in which people with “sensitive information” or “unique skills” were invited to contact the agency.
The post was accompanied by a video detailing ways to get in touch without being identified, including by using the dark web — a hidden part of the internet accessed by using anonymising browsers — as well as alternative ways to contact it anonymously, securely and safely.
“Your safety and well-being are our top priority. Please, taking into account your personal circumstances, adopt the necessary security measures to protect yourself,” the CIA said, adding that “all information received from volunteers will be kept completely confidential.” The post on X has been viewed 3.4 million times, as of Wednesday morning.
The post is seen as a highly unusual move by the CIA to recruit informants and gather intelligence in the Islamic Republic although the U.S. intelligence agency has previously posted similar messages in Russian, Korean and Mandarin inviting people to share information.
It noted in 2024 that it had done this because “authoritarian countries across the world are restricting people’s access to information, as well as their freedom of movement and communication.” As a result, the CIA added, “individuals in these places often can’t access Western social media, it can be very difficult to speak out, and telling the truth often carries serious consequences.”
The latest Persian-language call comes amid heightened tensions with Iran, with whom the U.S. is currently holding talks aimed at preventing the state from proceeding with its nuclear program.
The U.S. has amassed a large military force in the Middle East in recent weeks, warning that it’s ready to strike Iran if it doesn’t agree to stop attempts to build nuclear weapons. Officials from Washington and Tehran are due to hold further nuclear talks in the Swiss city of Geneva on Thursday.
Trump addressed the subject of Iran during his State of the Union address on Tuesday night, saying: “We are in negotiations with them. They want to make a deal, but we haven’t heard those secret words: ‘We will never have a nuclear weapon.'”
“My preference is to solve this problem through diplomacy. But one thing is certain, I will never allow the world’s number one sponsor of terror, which they are by far, to have a nuclear weapon.”
CNBC has contacted Iran’s foreign ministry for a response to Trump’s comments.
Iran has talked up the prospect of a deal this week, saying an agreement is “within reach.”
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on social media Tuesday that the country would resume talks with the U.S. in Geneva this week “with a determination to achieve a fair and equitable deal — in the shortest possible time.”
— CNBC’s Sam Meredith contributed to this report.
