Britain’s MI6 spy agency has launched a new secret messaging service on the dark web called “Silent Courier” to recruit spies from Russia and other countries. This is the first time the agency has used the dark web to reach out to people who might want to share secrets.
MI6’s boss, Sir Richard Moore, announced this new service during a speech in Istanbul. He’s about to retire, and Blaise Metreweli will take over as the first woman to lead MI6.
Moore’s message was clear and direct:
“To those men and women in Russia who have truths to share and the courage to share them, I invite you to contact MI6.” He told them,“Our virtual door is open to you.”
The Silent Courier platform lets anyone worldwide with important information about terrorism or hostile spy activity contact the UK safely. The timing makes sense given the current tensions between Western countries and Russia, plus the growing threats from terrorists and foreign intelligence services.
UK Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper said that “national security is the first duty of any government,” and that “as the world changes, and the threats we’re facing multiply, we must ensure the UK is always one step ahead of our adversaries.” Basically, the British government knows it needs new ways to gather intelligence that match today’s threats.
The service uses the Tor network, which helps people browse the internet anonymously. The service will use the Tor browser to provide anonymous access to a secure MI6 messaging platform. To help people figure out how to use it, instructions for accessing the portal are publicly available on MI6’s verified YouTube channel, with videos in several languages, including English, French, Spanish, Arabic, Urdu, Hindi, and Russian.
But MI6 knows that just having a secure website isn’t enough to keep people safe, especially in countries with strict governments. MI6 advises individuals accessing its portal to use trustworthy VPNs and devices not linked to them to mitigate risks in some countries. This shows the agency understands the real danger for anyone who decides to share secrets, particularly in places where doing so could land them in serious trouble.
The videos promoting the service mix old-school spy imagery with modern technology. The launch is accompanied by a slickly produced video harking back to the image of MI6’s espionage most closely associated with the fictional spy James Bond – walks in the deep forest, and lone agents driving an SUV in the desert. But they also show people using the platform on their phones, blending classic spy stuff with current tech.
MI6 isn’t the first to try this approach. The launch follows a similar approach by the US Central Intelligence Agency, which published videos on social media in 2023 to target potential Russian spies. The fact that both the UK and the US are doing this shows they’re working together on shared security problems. The intelligence sharing between these two countries has always been strong.
This isn’t Moore’s first time reaching out to Russians either. Moore had previously given a rare public speech in Prague in July 2023, appealing to Russian citizens to spy for the UK. So this dark web portal is really just the next step after that earlier request. It shows MI6 has been serious about recruiting Russian informants for a while now.
Why does this matter? Sir Richard Moore emphasized that the UK’s intelligence services are “critical to calibrating risk and informing decisions” in navigating threats from hostile actors. In other words, platforms like Silent Courier are important for keeping the country safe amid complex threats.
Britain faces a range of security challenges today, from cyberattacks by foreign governments to terrorist networks that operate across borders. Silent Courier shows that MI6 is adapting to how things work now. By reaching out to potential informants on the dark web – where people can stay anonymous – MI6 is meeting them where they already are. Modern spying needs modern tools.
Will this actually work? Will valuable sources come forward through this portal? Nobody knows yet. But it definitely marks a new way of doing things for British intelligence. The days of just recruiting spies through face-to-face meetings in dark alleys are changing. Now, the recruitment happens online, in encrypted channels, through secure messaging apps that didn’t even exist twenty years ago.
For anyone considering using Silent Courier, the risks are real, but so is MI6’s commitment to protecting sources. The agency has decades of experience keeping informants safe, and they’re applying all that knowledge to this new digital platform. Whether you’re someone with information about terrorist plots, foreign spies, or other threats to security, the message is clear: Britain’s intelligence service wants to hear from you, and they’ve built a secure way for you to get in touch.