Twitter pledges to continue working with Mueller after indictments

Twitter pledged on Friday to continue assisting in the federal Russia probe after special counsel Robert Mueller’s team charged 13 Russian nationals for operating false Twitter accounts to influence U.S. voters.

In a statement obtained by The Hill, a Twitter spokesperson said that attempts to use the social media platform to interfere in elections violates the company’s mission.

“Russian efforts to disrupt the 2016 U.S. election, in part by abusing social media platforms, go against everything we at Twitter believe. Any activity of this kind is intolerable, and we all must do more to prevent it,” the spokesperson said in an email.

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“We look forward to working with the FBI Task Force to assist companies and the public in identifying foreign manipulation efforts through social media platforms,” the spokesperson added.

An indictment handed down by prosecutors on Mueller’s team accused the Russian Internet Research Agency and 13 individuals associated with the troll farm of creating hundreds of fake Twitter and Facebook accounts “to develop certain fictitious U.S. personas into ‘leader[s] of public opinion’ in the United States.”

The indictment describes a years-long effort by the St. Petersburg-based Internet Research Agency to spread divisive messages during the 2016 election, while supporting President Trump’s campaign and undermining his opponent, Hillary Clinton.

Specific Twitter accounts named in Friday’s indictment included accounts that the company revealed to Congress last year in a list of known Russian-controlled Twitter handles, including accounts impersonating Black Lives Matter activists and the Tennessee Republican Party.

“This indictment serves as a reminder that people are not always who they appear to be on the Internet,” Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein said at a press briefing announcing the indictments.

“The indictment alleges that the Russian conspirators want to promote discord in the United States and undermine public confidence in democracy.”