MI6 Opens Dark Web Portal “Silent Courier” for Russians to Share Secrets

The UK’s foreign intelligence service, MI6, has launched a new platform for potential agents to get in touch. Announced on September 19, the platform, called Silent Courier, operates on the dark web and is designed to allow people with sensitive information to safely contact the UK.

The main purpose of Silent Courier is to make it easier for MI6 to find and recruit new spies around the world, especially in places like Russia. Anyone, no matter where they are in the world, who has information about terrorism or hostile intelligence activities can now securely send it to the UK.

Screenshot from the Silent Courier dark web portal

According to a press release from the UK government, the new portal is a key part of a larger plan to improve the country’s security. It comes at a time of a major increase in defence spending, the biggest since the Cold War.

Outgoing MI6 Chief, Sir Richard Moore, announced the platform in Istanbul. In his final public speech as the head of the agency, he said the new portal will help MI6 navigate modern threats. He said, “Our virtual door is open to you,” and invited anyone with information on global instability to get in touch.

Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper has also commented on the news, saying that the world is changing and threats are growing; therefore, the UK’s intelligence agencies must use the best technology to stay ahead of these challenges and keep the public safe.

Instructions on how to use Silent Courier are available on MI6’s verified YouTube channel. To stay safe, the agency advises people to use a trustworthy VPN and a device not connected to them personally.

This decision represents a major shift in how intelligence agencies operate. For a long time, agencies like MI6 would recruit people through face-to-face meetings and traditional methods

The so-called dark web, accessible through the Tor browser, is designed to hide a user’s location. This makes it a way to protect someone who wants to share secrets, especially if they are in a country with tight surveillance. However, the Tor browser has its own security vulnerabilities, which in some cases can be exploited by hackers for backdoor access or by authorities to deanonymize users.

The UK’s approach follows a similar initiative by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) in the United States, which also launched a portal accessible to Russians via the Tor internet browser in May 2022, as reported by Hackread.com.

The c initiative aimed to allow Russians who were unhappy with their government’s actions, particularly regarding the war in Ukraine, to securely share secret information with the agency. The CIA also used a series of social media videos in 2023 to recruit Russians.