UK spy agency MI6 launches new portal to recruit foreign informants via dark web

Britain's foreign intelligence service, MI6, has launched a new dark web messaging portal to facilitate the exchange of information from potential foreign informants and to recruit spies worldwide, including from Russia.

"As the world changes, and the threats we're facing multiply, we must ensure the UK is always one step ahead of our adversaries," UK Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper told domestic press ahead of the Silent Courier platform's launch.

"Our world-class intelligence agencies are at the coalface of this challenge, working behind the scenes to keep British people safe," she added.

"Now we're bolstering their efforts with cutting-edge tech so MI6 can recruit new spies for the UK - in Russia and around the world."

On Friday, MI6 posted a series of videos to promote the platform and explain how it works.

In one video, a narrator says, "For over a hundred years, the bedrock of MI6's work has been face-to-face work."

"Now we can make those connections even more securely online, using our upgraded dark web portal, Silent Courier."

"If you have access to sensitive information relating to global instability or hostile intelligence activity, you can now contact MI6 and share this securely using Silent Courier," the narrator explains.

In a separate video, MI6 instructed those who wish to make contact with the agency to use a "clean" device, deterring potential informants from using their personal phone or computer, as well as any devices belonging to family or friends.

Britain's intelligence agency also advises informants based in "high-risk countries" to use a VPN, on top of the recommended procedure, which suggests using Tor — a free, open-source web browser for private and anonymous internet browsing.

Outgoing MI6 chief Richard Moore, who has helmed the spy agency for nearly five years, confirmed Silent Courier's launch during an address in Istanbul on Friday, "to those men and women in Russia who have truths to share and the courage to share them, I invite you to contact MI6.”

Moore is to be succeeded by Blaise Metreweli in October, who will become the first woman to lead the service.

The drive to recruit foreign agents is similar to a 2023 campaign led by the US' CIA, in which Washington targeted potential Russian informants in a series of social media videos.