German intelligence agency steps up social media presence

Greetings from Berlin-Mitte, Germany’s foreign intelligence agency, the BND, posted on its newly launched Instagram account.

The BND, headquartered in the German capital’s central Mitte district, on Monday launched its own channel on the social network, which is particularly popular with adolescents and young adults.

The agency set its sights on Instagram in a bid to attract young talent.

BND president, Bruno Kahl, told dpa in Berlin that a modern employer needed to be present where bright young people spent time.

This is a bit of a reversal, the intelligence agency was previously known for staying out of the public eye as much as possible.

In addition to having a modern website, the BND has also been represented on the YouTube video portal since November 2018, but only has a little over 1,000 subscribers there.

In March, the secret service started a campaign on Twitter (“#FollowTheGlitchKarnickel”) to recruit experts from the hacker scene.

However, the BND is not planning its own Twitter channel.

The federal domestic intelligence agency, formally known as the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV), has more than 28,000 followers on Twitter.

But the unprecedented step of participating in social media is considered something of a milestone within the BND.

“We have to go modern ways to give school leavers, university graduates and young professionals in particular an impression of the professional opportunities that an internationally operating security authority offers,” Kahl emphasised.

The BND is hoping to reach up to 60,000 Instagram users per month.