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Have you been inundated by marketing offers on your social media sites like Facebook and Twitter? Most users have. But did you know that some of it may soon be coming from the U.S. military?
The U.S. Air Force has requested bids for something referred to as "Persona Management Software," giving 50 user licenses for 10 identities per user. In other words, 50 users will be able to operate up to 10 different identities each, for a total of 500 new fake people on the Internet. These fake personae will be used to open social media accounts and interact with the public.
The contract requires that each identity is complete with background and supporting details that are geographically and culturally realistic and consistent. The service should include a real-time data feed that allows the user to be aware of local information for each of the identities he or she operates.
It further requires that each of the 50 personae be able to be manipulated to appear to be coming from different areas of the world. The actual locations of use for the proposed software would be the MacDill Air Force Base in Florida and bases in Baghdad, Iraq, and Kabul, Afghanistan.
The exact purpose for these fake identities remains speculative. It could be something as innocent as being able to manage several official personae of the military from one convenient workstation.
The U.S. military is no stranger to employing propaganda, and this is undoubtedly at least part of the purpose for this program. It may also be used for antiterrorism activities or to keep track of employee and military personnel online activities.
Some have proposed a darker purpose. Since the Air Force has indicated intended use of this software in Middle Eastern war zones, could they be gathering embarrassing pictures and personal information from enemy soldiers' Facebook profiles? Could they be influencing foreign press polls, creating an illusive consensus of opinion? As one blogger put it, "... a fake mob can be really effective."
The bids were requested in June. This means these fake personae could be roaming the Internet already.
Do you know who your friends are?
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