Beautiful Virgin Islands

Tuesday, Jun 03, 2025

There’s a new influencer in town: Followed by thousands, in service to Her Majesty the Queen… welcome to Instagram, MI5

There’s a new influencer in town: Followed by thousands, in service to Her Majesty the Queen… welcome to Instagram, MI5

British spy agency MI5 is now on Instagram, promising to show off the ‘secret of successful spying’ and demonstrate how to ‘consider all angles.’ It has already beaten its sister service, GCHQ, in number of followers.
In just five hours since making its first post, the official MI5 account already has 30,000 people following it. One could see this as a testament to the limelight that the counterintelligence agency gets from the similarly named foreign intelligence organization which employs fictitious super-agent James Bond. MI6 is sadly absent on the network, but GCHQ, Britain’s signal intelligence agency, joined Instagram in October 2018, and has only 24.3k followers so far.

British spooks will have to work hard, however, to compete with their cousins across the pond. Since the CIA joined the network in 2019, it has drawn a cozy audience of 350,000 followers.

The first MI5 post contains a photo from an unusual angle of its London HQ and says that considering unorthodox perspectives is a “secret to successful spying.” It adds: “Follow us as we open our doors to Instagram, granting you exclusive views of life inside MI5.”

Of course, spy agencies are supposedly not on Instagram for the strong following and free skin care products that are awarded to the regular influencer crowd. MI5 Director General Ken McCallum says he wants to helm a more open intelligence organization that is keeping up with “an increasingly open and connected world.”

“We owe it to the public to be constantly striving to learn and improve; and in our fast-moving world, with technology advancing at incredible speed, it would be dangerous vanity to imagine MI5 can build all the capabilities it needs inside its own bubble,” he wrote in the Daily Telegraph, in an article explaining the “belated” Instagram engagement.

The account will allow MI5 to “reach out directly” to the wider public, seeking recruits, external expertise, and “varied perspectives,” and debunking “whatever Martini-drinking stereotypes may be lingering” out there.

People should not disregard the agency as an employer “based on perceived barriers such as socio-economic background, ethnicity, sexuality, gender, disability, or which part of the country they happen to have been born in.”

So there you are: the MI5 is on ‘gram to show its woker side and lure better talent. Hopefully, this drive won’t be as prone to hilarious linguistic blunders as the CIA’s has been, when it comes to Russia. After all, Moscow is a top spy threat for London – or so it has been saying for years.
Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
China Accuses US of Violating Trade Truce
Panama Port Owner Balances US-China Pressures
France Implements Nationwide Outdoor Smoking Ban to Protect Children
German Chancellor Merz Keeps Putin Guessing on Missile Strategy
Mandelson Criticizes UK's 'Fetish' for Abandoning EU Regulations
British Fishing Boat Owner Fined €30,000 by French Authorities
Dutch government falls as far-right leader Wilders quits coalition
Harvard Urges US to Unfreeze Funds for Public Health Research
Businessman Mauled by Lion at Luxury Namibian Lodge
Researchers Consider New Destinations Beyond the U.S.
53-Year-Old Doctor Claims Biological Age of 23
Trump Struggles to Secure Trade Deals With China and Europe
Russia to Return 6,000 Corpses Under Ukraine Prisoner Swap Deal
Microsoft Lays Off Hundreds More Amid Restructuring
Harvey Weinstein’s Publicist Embraces Notoriety
Macron and Meloni Seek Unity Despite Tensions
Trump Administration Accused of Obstructing Deportation Cases
Newark Mayor Sues Over Arrest at Immigration Facility
Center-Left Candidate Projected to Win South Korean Presidency
Trump’s Tariffs Predicted to Stall Global Economic Growth
South Korea’s President-Elect Expected to Take Softer Line on Trump and North Korea
Trump’s China Strategy Remains a Geopolitical Puzzle
Ukraine Executes Long-Range Drone Strikes on Russian Airbases
Conservative Karol Nawrocki wins Poland’s presidential election
Study Identifies Potential Radicalization Risk Among Over One Million Muslims in Germany
Good news: Annalena Baerbock Elected President of the UN General Assembly
Apple Appeals EU Law Over User Data Sharing Requirements
South Africa: "First Black Bank" Collapses after Being Looted by Owners
Poland will now withdraw from the EU migration pact after pro-Trump nationalist wins Election
"That's Disgusting, Don’t Say It Again": The Trump Joke That Made the President Boil
Trump Cancels NASA Nominee Over Democratic Donations
Paris Saint-Germain's Greatest Triumph Is Football’s Lowest Point
OnlyFans for Sale: From Lockdown Lifeline to Eight-Billion-Dollar Empire
Mayor’s Security Officer Implicated | Shocking New Details Emerge in NYC Kidnapping Case
Hegseth Warns of Potential Chinese Military Action Against Taiwan
OPEC+ Agrees to Increase Oil Output for Third Consecutive Month
Jamie Dimon Warns U.S. Bond Market Faces Pressure from Rising Debt
Turkey Detains Istanbul Officials Amid Anti-Corruption Crackdown
Taylor Swift Gains Ownership of Her First Six Albums
Bangkok Ranked World's Top City for Remote Work in 2025
Satirical Sketch Sparks Political Spouse Feud in South Korea
Indonesia Quarry Collapse Leaves Multiple Dead and Missing
South Korean Election Video Pulled Amid Misogyny Outcry
Asian Economies Shift Away from US Dollar Amid Trade Tensions
Netflix Investigates Allegations of On-Set Mistreatment in K-Drama Production
US Defence Chief Reaffirms Strong Ties with Singapore Amid Regional Tensions
Vietnam Faces Strategic Dilemma Over China's Mekong River Projects
Malaysia's First AI Preacher Sparks Debate on Islamic Principles
White House Press Secretary Criticizes Harvard Funding, Advocates for Vocational Training
France to Implement Nationwide Smoking Ban in Outdoor Spaces Frequented by Children
×