British spy agency 'officially' joins Twitter, promptly follows James Bond
LONDON — The UK's electronic surveillance and cyber security agency GCHQ has joined Twitter in an attempt to raise awareness about its work, tackle the image it gained after the 2013 Edward Snowden revelations and follow James Bond.
In its first tweet, the agency simply said "Hello, world," a familiar phrase for people learning coding languages.
Andrew Pike, Director of Communications at GCHQ, said: "In joining social media GCHQ can use its own voice to talk directly about the important work we do in keeping Britain safe".
The move to the digital world comes after long months of debate within the agency, which even scrutinised the content of the first tweet for weeks, the Financial Times reported.
In trying to be "more accessible and to help the public understand more about our work," GCHQ wants to win over the public after Snowden's revelations.
The former U.S. defence contractor and whistleblower leaked intelligence documents that pointed to widespread digital surveillance programmes carried out by the NSA (National Security Agency) in the U.S., which were assisted by GCHQ.
The agency has argued that surveillance was needed to protect citizens against cyber crime.
Naturally, the agency's first tweet prompted some responses:
