For two years, a lone activist went undercover inside two domestic terrorist organizations in the United States, rising through the ranks to try to gain intel and leak it to the media. His goal was ultimately to weaken them and bring them down.
This mission was life or death: To undertake it and come out alive, he had to take extreme digital privacy measures. In the first episode of our new series, Witness Protection, the activist gave us an exclusive inside account of how he infiltrated the organizations and the complex techniques he used to stay safe.
Since the attack on the United States Capitol on January 6, militias have increasingly attracted Americans radicalized by what they saw as an attempt from the Democratic party to steal power. Groups all over the country mobilized, planning to use coordinated intimidation and violence to bring about their political aims.
Two of the most notorious of these far-right militias were American Patriots Three Percent (AP3) and the Oath Keepers, both classified as domestic terror organizations by several monitoring organizations including the Anti-Defamation League. His goal was to take senior positions within the militias, stealing and exfiltrating intelligence which could then be shared with media outlets.
Proton Mail played a crucial part in his strategy, allowing him to communicate safely with journalists using a covert technique known as foldering. Sharing the login credentials for a burner Proton Mail account, he would save messages as drafts, never actually sending them. The recipient could then log in to the account, read the draft, and delete it. No communications ever had to be sent.
After successfully infiltrating AP3 and the Oath Keepers, fracturing the groups and sending them partially underground, he’s still operating in the field today. We went to extraordinary lengths to conceal his identity, using a blackout helmet, jumpsuit and gloves, and voice changer to hide any identifying details.
Watch the video here:
