WASHINGTON – The Central Intelligence Agency has rolled out new Persian-language guidance on social media platforms, providing Iranians with secure methods to reach out to American intelligence officials.
This recruitment campaign unfolds as President Donald Trump has significantly increased U.S. military presence across the Middle East, positioning forces for potential strikes against Iran should nuclear negotiations scheduled for Thursday collapse without an agreement.
During his State of the Union address on Tuesday, Trump began building his argument for potential military intervention, declaring he would never permit the Islamic Republic – which he labeled as the globe’s leading terrorism supporter – to obtain nuclear weapons. Iranian officials continue to deny pursuing nuclear weapons capabilities.
The intelligence agency distributed its Persian-language instructions across multiple platforms on Tuesday, including X, Instagram, Facebook, Telegram and YouTube.
This latest outreach represents part of an ongoing CIA initiative targeting potential informants within Iran, China, North Korea and Russia.
The agency advised interested Iranians to “take appropriate action” for personal safety before making contact and warned against using workplace computers or personal mobile devices.
“Use a new, disposable device, if possible” and “be aware of your surroundings and who may be able to see your screen or activity,” the instructions stated, requesting that contacts share their locations, names, professional roles and “access to information or skills of interest to our agency.”
The guidance recommended using reliable Virtual Private Networks “not headquartered in Russia, Iran or China,” or utilizing the Tor Network, which provides data encryption and conceals users’ IP addresses.
CIA officials refused to provide additional comments. Iran’s United Nations representatives have not yet responded to requests for comment.
American negotiators Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner are set to engage with Iranian representatives headed by Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi in Geneva on Thursday for continued discussions regarding Tehran’s nuclear activities.
Trump has warned of military intervention should negotiations fail to produce results, or if Tehran proceeds with executing individuals detained during January’s nationwide anti-government protests.
Human rights organizations report that government forces killed thousands during their suppression of the demonstrations, marking Iran’s most severe internal upheaval since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.
