The IDF will begin routinely monitoring the social media accounts of all regular-service soldiers as part of a renewed effort to prevent the exposure of sensitive security information to Israel’s enemies.

According to a report on Army Radio, the new system—”Morpheus”—is based on artificial intelligence technology and is programmed to scan the public accounts of the approximately 170,000 soldiers in the IDF.

The system will analyze texts, photos, and videos uploaded to social media and will issue alerts when there are concerns about the disclosure of security-related information.

If sensitive content is identified, the soldier will receive an automatic notification with instructions to delete the post, and in serious cases a phone inquiry will be conducted by an information-security officer.

The system is expected to soon receive the required legal approvals and is scheduled to begin operating at the beginning of December.

However, “Morpheus” has two main limitations: it can only monitor open accounts that are not set to private, and it cannot monitor reservists due to legal restrictions related to monitoring civilians.

Over the past four months, a pilot program monitored the accounts of 45,000 soldiers. According to IDF sources, the program flagged thousands of cases in which soldiers posted sensitive security information. The soldiers were contacted by information security officers and ordered to delete the posts.

The IDF acknowledges that the new initiative “pushes the boundaries of privacy and restraint of power” but emphasizes that it is a necessary step in light of the immeasurable damage caused by security information leaked to social media—information that allowed Hamas to build a comprehensive intelligence picture prior to the October 7 massacre.

(YWN Israel Desk—Jerusalem)