The media pearl-clutching over changes to the Twitter social media platform has become detached from reality. During a Face the Nation discussion today, a very serious Margaret Brennan and Kris Krebs, former director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) outline the national security risks created by Elon Musk’s change to the “verified Twitter user” system. The “blue checks.”
Mr Krebs outlined how bad actors from Russia, Iran and China could potentially write mean words on Twitter and create social collapse in the United States as a result of election interference, defined as misinformation and disinformation. Additionally, the unified western military order is at risk from the national security threat posed by allowing random unmonitored discussion on a social media platform. With the midterm election this week, people could die if Elon Musk removes the control filters on the global conversation. WATCH:
[Transcript] – […] BRENNAN: We return to our conversation now about election security with CBS News, cybersecurity expert and analyst Chris Krebs. Chris, I want to talk about something that’s happening right now. Social media has already changed the way we communicate and, certainly, our political world. President Biden said a few days ago that he has concerns about billionaire Elon Musk’s purchase of Twitter- said, “the platform spews lies all across the world. There’s no editors anymore in America, there are no editors, how do we expect kids to be able to understand what is at stake?” It’s not just kids, right? What concerns do you have about this happening just days before the election, these changes to Twitter?
KREBS: Well, I think I think the government for one has a mechanism by which they can review the acquisition, the Committee for Foreign Investment in the United States can take a look at particularly the second and third ownership positions in Twitter, including Saudi Arabia. That is something that I’m assuming that the Treasury Department is taking a look at right now to see if they can put in place a national security agreement or even potentially unwind the purchase. But I think more specifically to what’s happening right now with Twitter, I think there are kind of- there are two “Elons” that we are seeing. There’s the public Elon, that’s, you know, trolling and saying $8, please, on all the complaints about some of the shifts in the moderation and other activities. Then there’s what’s happening behind the scenes, the conversations with the civil rights groups, with advertisers, with the teens, which perhaps maybe a little bit more stable. And I think if you look at the platform itself right now, not a whole lot has changed. That may not be a popular opinion, but I think the reality is that most, you haven’t seen too much of a change in the moderation. Now, the concern, though, is what happens tomorrow, where you can buy the blue tick for $8 a month, Twitter Blue–
MARGARET BRENNAN: For our viewers who don’t use Twitter, a blue check is a sign of credibility.
KREBS: It has historically been a marker of trust, and that Twitter has said, we’ve confirmed and authenticated the identity of this person, which tends to be a politician, or a news media personality or a journalist, an academic or someone that may be a popular voice in certain civil rights, civil liberties issue.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Now you can buy it for eight bucks a month.
KREBS: Along with a number of other features of editing and longer-form video posting. But again, to have such a dramatic shift in that marker of trust, now you can buy it, in advance of as we’ve been talking about a very contentious and important election. It opens the information space to a broader community of influencers, clout chasers, election denialists–
MARGARET BRENNAN: Foreign actors?
KREBS: Absolutely, I mean, we’ve seen reports lately of Russia, China and Iran, back at their old tricks, and it is going to create a very chaotic environment.
MARGARET BRENNAN: To that point in- in 2018, during the midterms, [U.S] Cyber Command took offensive operations to take out Russian trolls who are spreading misinformation. The New York Times has a story today saying Russia is back at it. What does that say to you about U.S. defenses?
KREBS: Well, I think so Recorded Future and Graphika, two research firms have released information that Russian bots, trolls, associated with the Internet Research Agency, which is a group that targeted since the 2016 and the 2018 election, are back at it and are undermining this time Democratic candidates for Senate in some of the- the more contentious races. I think what it says is that the- there’s a broader community of actors, they recognize that political discourse is very divisive here in the US, and they have more opportunities, probably than ever before, to continue to undermine confidence to create chaos, which is really, their primary objective here. It’s not necessarily that a winner wins, but that we’ve all lost- lost confidence and they degrade the American democracy experiment.
MARGARET BRENNAN: There are also a number of sitting Senators, and of note, Ambassador Richard Grinnell former President Trump’s Acting Director of National Intelligence has been posting some misleading information, that’s him on the screen, about the election. He said, “any state which doesn’t count all the votes and announce the winner Tuesday night is incompetent.”–
KREBS: So all 50 states then, by that formulation,
MARGARET BRENNAN: Because what you’re saying is just the fact that votes are never finalized on election night. But why do you think someone who knows better is posting something like that?
KREBS: Well, whether he knows better, I can’t assume that, but the point here is that it’s for clout chasing, it’s for influence. There’s a reward system and structure set up right now within the far-right of the GOP that provides additional engagement. So, you tweet something like that, and you can see your likes, your retweets, your amplification really take off. And if you’re just talking about some other, you know, more mundane domestic issue, nobody cares. But there’s a reward system and incentive structure that’s set up where exactly this sort of messaging is- is rewarded. It’s encouraged, and, and this is again, going back to Governor Sununu’s comments, we need leaders to lead. We need the presumptive leaders of the Republican Party to stand up and say this is unacceptable, this is not how it works. We need to be good faith actors in this process and unfortunately, leaders aren’t leading right now.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Chris Krebs, thank you as always for your analysis and we will see you on election night as part of CBS coverage at our democracy desk here at CBS News. (LINK)
Progs: People will die!!!
Also Progs: The earth has too many people!!!
Oh, they moved on from “The Republicans are taking your social security!” already? Man, that was fast.
Weren’t much in the account, anyhow.
It gets boring to libs, they said that, re SS, for every election cycle for what seems like decades now.
“A Blue Check has historically been a marker of trust.”
BULLSHIT.
As I understand it, ALL it did was confirm someone posting a comment as Donald Trump, Sidney Powell, etc really WAS who they said they were.
So, you can”trust” their identity, doesn’t mean you can trust what they SAY.
I really don’t care, but if libs heads are exploding, I suppose its a good thing.
Normal people were denied it even though they had just as much ability to prove their living breathing existence, Twitter deliberately sought to make it a credibility boost, and some were extorted to pay many thousands for it, but it was always a scam.
These people take themselves all too seriously.
It’s a social status, an accessory, that only ‘certain’ people should be allowed to flaunt. /s
Blues need to check their privilege.
Lol good one
Hey come on! These people were slaving maybe 12 hours a week from their converted condos in San Francisco. SF is expensive! $15,000 is nothing more than a couple of months rent! So what’s wrong with a little side hustle?
That was also my understanding of what it meant.
However, Brennan seems to be suggesting that it signifies something more.
If she’s right, then maybe she can explain why we should trust Blue Checks like Harvey Weinstein and Bill Cosby.
Somehow other tech companies like Paypal and online providers like banks are able to verify the identities of their customers in minutes. Twitter needed months and hundreds of tweets filling the narrative to the letter before you can have your identity verified.
Ha! Try a mark of propaganda. The blue checks parrot one another’s Democrap talking points like a Tucker Carlson weekend reel of the talking heads.
Deleted because of a misconception.
I had mistakenly thought this Wall Street Journal article implied blue checks already cost $5 before Elon, but the links in the article about the charge clarified it for me. The checks are now part of a Blue service which was already there but didn’t necessarily include the checkmark. The color is appropriate…
https://www.wsj.com/articles/elon-musk-defies-management-mantras-with-his-rapid-overhaul-at-twitter-11667730675?mod=djemalertNEWS
Excerpt:
Twitter on Saturday said it has begun rolling out software updates to charge users $7.99 a month for its Twitter Blue subscription service, up from $4.99 currently. Subscribers get their accounts verified, a service that has been free and offers a blue check mark to notable accounts.
It now appears to me that the cost before Elon was either $15K (or higher?) if they didn’t like you, or probably a bribe to take a checkmark if they did…
One now wonders whether PDJT had to pay extra for his…
PJDT has had to “pay extra” for a mountain of crap for the last few years.
And it can be yours for only $15,000! What a deal!
UPDATE in Missouri v Biden lawsuit.
Thread:
Thanks, sync. Good News.
So they really do believe their own press about their own almighty omniscience, and their own capacity to control what people do, say, and THINK.
Once again–when people show you who they are, believe them.
Read the transcript. Horrible propaganda.
So, are these social media outlets platforms or publishers? Publishing companies have editors.
Editors is code for Censors, Nannies to protect the mindless twits from uncomfortable thoughts and truths.
It’s all about the agenda.
At first, I thought that screen cap of Bill Murray was gonna be him saying “Blown up, Sir!” (And that would have worked too. 😉 )
I was waiting for the rest of the scene, regarding body parts.
Nice hat tip to Stripes. Such a funny movie.
Screw, these people. They just allowed 5.5 million foreign actors into this country.
Just shot-up you lying scumbags, literally no one is listening.
Oh, but they are. Talk to a democrat or #nevertrumper. Go to pJMedia or Instapundit. They all believe it.
I’d rather be ruled by Random people out out of the phone book than all the blue checks on Twitter. WFB (2022)
“Twitter has said, we’ve confirmed and authenticated the identity of this person”
“We’ve” is the problem.
I have a terrible time taking anyone seriously that wears Dr. Seuss socks on national television. I just can’t do it.
This week on Lying Scumbags of Face the Nation.
Could changing blue checks cause Okinawa to turn upside-down?
Apparently! At least, to tilt..
Ask Hank, he’s the expert.
‘The New York Times has a story today saying Russia is back at it.’ – Margaret Brennan
This is one of the weakest-sourced stories the Slimes has ever published.
It’s not fifty intelligence community ‘experts’ denouncing Hunter Biden’s laptop as ‘Russian spycraft,’ two weeks before the 2020 election.
No, it’s just a couple of anonymous internet personas, posting awful ‘conservative’ remarks and questioning US support for Ukraine. This, according to the New York Slimes, threatens to taint the entire midterm election.
What we can WE do about this awful menace to democracy?
For me, the answer is clear: slang the living sh*t out of the Old Grey Lady of 8th Avenue. Then kick her to the icy, slushy curb, perhaps to be run over by a wayward horse carriage in the cold, remorseless city that never sleeps.
Krebs is the last person I would rely on as an ‘authority’ on election integrity.
“If you had one job…”
I honestly don’t care what this liar has to say about Twitter.
He should have to answer for why he missed Konnech getting access to poll worker data and shipping it to the Chicoms.
He probably cracked champagne when Catherine and Greg went to jail.
But thankfully his schadenfreude on that score is now over.
Still looking for Kreb’s bona fides as a cybersecurity expert. His undergraduate degree is in Environmental Sciences (UVA) and he holds a JD (GMU).
Appointed and fired during DJT Presidency.
This, in a nutshell, is why the media is having a hissy fit.
“Well, I think that the dangerous edges here are that [Pres. Trump] is trying to undermine the media and trying to make up his own facts and could be while unemployment and the economy worsens he could have undermined the messaging so much that he can actually control exactly what people think. And that is–that is our job.”
Mika Brzezinski (MSNBC, Feb. 22, 2017)
The reason I prefer conservatism over liberalism is because conservatism permits me the freedom to think for myself.
I don’t need people like Chuck Todd and Mika Brzezinski to tell me what or how to think.
Of course, Mika’s attitude shouldn’t come as a surprise, considering she got it from her father.
“Shortly, the public will be unable to reason or think for themselves. They’ll only be able to parrot the information they’ve been given on the previous night’s news.”
~ Zbigniew Brzezinski
Please pull the fainting couch to stage left so these dunces hit the floor hard.
But aren’t you concerned that they might strangle on their own pearl strands?
😆
I was raised with manners. 😉 I’d offer to help…
Iran, Russia, China…
Wake me up when we protect our border, execute murderers, stop trying to make everyone gay or a trans cyborg.
When they say “National Security” it means efforts to control the American public. It has nothing to do with our security.
Just like”Our Democracy”, our “National Security” means their democracy and their security.
All a sick joke.
Totally predictable reaction by the deep state.
Nice try, but the verification is not about content. It is about identity.
Where do these slimy charcters come from?
The Commie University system.
Real verification is about identity.
With these people, everything is about “the struggle.”
In the meantime, in the real world, driver’s licenses continue to be accepted everywhere for multiple transactions and no one faints.
Head off the digital gulag before it’s too late…
what frighten the likes of the corrupt in DC is that yes, russian nationals can start having a global come to jesus moment and actually debating us foreign policy and other corrupt activities…exhibit: ukraine and burisma…
its the debate and conversation they have refused to allow into the public viewing without the narrative generators who carry water for criminals.
I would go even further and suggest that if twitter is to become a truly open forum of debate and invite and be open to all comers, it is likely to turn into what could be
wikileaks 2.0….but better.
no stealing involved. no foreign servers or espionage laws to argue.
twitter is right here in America.
you want to have a conversation and debate.
let it begin.
long overdue I say.
let the merit and the facts of the debate win the day.
this is what makes the corrupt criminals in DC have night terrors.
they have long siloed and blackholded and wrapped their horseshit in linen for far too long.
whether twitter will become that watershed moment is unclear.
but it will get tested.
and then we will see the heads pop.
God Bless America
Wow. That comment about linen is a powerful image. 👍🏻
Ya mean like declaring a laptop implicating a presidental candidate as corrup Russian disinformation? Stuff like that?
Do not confuse Chris Krebs of CBS tech security with Brian Krebs of “Krebs On Security” https://krebsonsecurity.com/
Brian Krebs is “the real deal” while Chris Krebs is definitely not as accomplished in data or internet security.
Brian Krebs has helped millions of people avoid cyberscams, malware, etc. He’s the real Hero.
Sadly Brian Krebs is an anti-Trump idiot, but he’s great with info sec stuff.
Easy to call BS on these people’s garbage.
!!!! Kathy Griffin
https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2022/11/new-kathy-griffins-twitter-account-permanently-suspended-impersonating-elon-musk/
Maybe they can resurrect the account of the little girl who was had the AOC parody account.
Mini AOC!
She’s adorable.
You can find her on Truth Social.
She tried to pose as Elon and speak for him. Remember reports of that a few days ago? It was she.
Now that there is a Twittiot!
If Margaret “The Marxist” Brennan is involved then it’s propaganda.
Notice the subtle shift of language here.
Instead of PAYING FOR the blue check mark, which is what people will be doing, the Dem propagandists now say people will be BUYING the blue check mark, implying that it’s like some kind of smarmy transaction.
And instead of simply acknowledging that the blue check mark only means that the identify of the person has been verified, the Dem propagandists try to claim that the check mark had been a sign of verity, which it never was. Blue check marked people could like just as easily as they could tell the truth.
These people disgust me.
And what the heck, who did dummy Margaret Brennan blow to get her job? She’s as difficult to watch as Chris Wallace, except a heck of lot more stupid.
They so fear free speech because they can’t control the narrative.
Twitter going from silent partner with government to government enemy #1.
SMH…REALLY???? Do these people rehearse these episodes with David Brock early Sunday morning every week?
Case in point:
“MARGARET BRENNAN: Because what you’re saying is just the fact that votes are never finalized on election night. But why do you think someone who knows better is posting something like that?”
Only in the last three or four election cycles have we not had same day counts finalized!!!!!
However, Margaret’s husband IS a Foreign Islamic JAG officer who somehow found his way into the US Marines and teaches ‘Islam is Democracy’ subjects at the University of Florida.
Dunno.
https://www.the-sun.com/news/3042090/who-is-margaret-brennans-husband-yado-yakub/
I know, it’s maddening. She’s simply reading a script.
The blue check version of “Russia Russia Russia.” I suppose if the power centers he represents had been honest with the people, say, over the last 120, 80, 60, 30 years, he might have a leg to stand on. Eisenhower once said he was always impressed with the common sense of the American people. This crowd has signaled over and over again that they have no confidence in, and in fact, antipathy for, the common sense of the American people. The reason is simple, they reject, on their oath-breaking principles, that anyone should have any check whatsoever on their ability to do whatever it is they and their owners wish. The people are intent on having a seat at the table, while the “Corporation”plays musical chairs.
Insufferable. Rewards for posting on social media are only for Republicans 😂.
Sock man Krebs what a tragic loser….
The Blue Checks are like the stars on Dr Seuss’s Star Belly Sneeches. As soon as we can all get one for $8 a month, the elites will remove their stars and insist on more “elite”.
SPIT!
I was just talking to a friend the other day about ‘Ghostbusters‘ and they said they had never seen the movie. I told them it was a must.
The elites don’t like it when the proles share their advantages.
How dare they sell blue checks to just anybody!!!!
Hilarious attached note.
I just read on CFP that Twitter employees were secretly selling blue check markers for 13k, 15k, whatever the market will bear. Apparently, this was confirmed by Elon Musk. I’m sure the bad players Krebs is talking about can afford the 13k, 15k amount. Sorry Krebs, you’re just not krebsable (credible). Free speech is free speech. All the reasons set forth to limit it are scare tactics. How to solve propaganda? How about a good solid education in critical thinking and letting the educated populace figure out what’s fake speech and what isn’t.
The entire discussion is based on the wrong definition. A blue check is not the mark of ‘credibility’ or ‘trust’.
There is a paranoia from those in IC over Musk changing Twitter, no?
One would surmise Twitter and IC have a history, no?
NY Times et al regularly have foreign influence, no?
Kris Krebs is a morally deficient, corrupt individual who is not too bright, despite his ego.
He appears to be wearing American flag sox, bespeaking his contempt for our country.
And then, there’s Margaret Brennan, a contemptible woman with an entire closet for her expansive Spanx collection.
It’s really hard to watch these creeps, but it’s important to know that they’re there, and feverishly working against us.
Hmmm. Another “global crisis”.
Pass the salt, please.
“a dramatic shift in that marker of trust, now you can buy it”
CBS Face The Nation………brought to you by Pfizer.
It was (is?) possible to buy “blue checks” – so kinda hilarious that they are saying “a mark of trust”
Almost every point Krebs made, was exactly what the Dems are doing?
Creating chaos?
FJB is leading us? Only to the ice cream shop!
The Twit-check-masters were selling blue checks for $15,000?
Misinformation?