The United States Postal Service is apparently tracking social media posts as part of a clandestine program searching for “inflammatory” messages.
The program, known as the Internet Covert Operations Program, or iCOP, has not previously been made public and involves analysts combing through social media sites looking for “inflammatory” postings and then sharing those posts with government agencies, according to a document obtained by Yahoo News.
ICOP specifically tracks protests across the country. A March 16 government bulletin obtained by Yahoo, marked as “law enforcement sensitive,” showed that “analysts with the United States Postal Inspection Service (USPIS) Internet Covert Operations Program (iCOP) monitored significant activity regarding planned protests occurring internationally and domestically on March 20, 2021.”
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“Locations and times have been identified for these protests, which are being distributed online across multiple social media platforms, to include right-wing leaning Parler and Telegram accounts,” the bulletin read.
A nationwide protest dubbed the World Wide Rally for Freedom and Democracy was set to take place on March 20 and was intended to signify displeasure with a variety of issues, including coronavirus lockdowns.
“Parler users have commented about their intent to use the rallies to engage in violence,” the bulletin explained. “Image 3 on the right is a screenshot from Parler indicating two users discussing the event as an opportunity to engage in a ‘fight’ and to ‘do serious damage.’”
The bulletin concluded that “no intelligence is available to suggest the legitimacy of these threats.”
It also contains screenshots about the protests and includes specific names of individuals, such as a member of the Proud Boys, a controversial fraternal organization.
“iCOP analysts are currently monitoring these social media channels for any potential threats stemming from the scheduled protests and will disseminate intelligence updates as needed,” the bulletin read.
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The USPS did not immediately respond to a request for comment from the Washington Examiner, but it provided a general statement to Yahoo News about the authority it has to monitor the social media presence of U.S. citizens.
“The U.S. Postal Inspection Service is the primary law enforcement, crime prevention, and security arm of the U.S. Postal Service,” the statement read. “As such, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service has federal law enforcement officers, Postal Inspectors, who enforce approximately 200 federal laws to achieve the agency’s mission: protect the U.S. Postal Service and its employees, infrastructure, and customers; enforce the laws that defend the nation’s mail system from illegal or dangerous use; and ensure public trust in the mail.”
