Ministry rubbishes rumours of spying

Manama : Bahrain’s Government confirmed yesterday that it was not spying on citizens and residents as alleged by posts circulating on social media, DT News has learnt.

A spokesperson in the Anti-Cybercrime Directorate in Interior Ministry confirmed to DT News yesterday that “the circulated news is fake, posted by a counterfeited Facebook page and that the necessary proceedings are being taken”.

This comes after a page named “Bahrain C.I.D Investigation” that claimed to belong to the Ministry of Interior spread fear and irritation among people.

“From tomorrow onwards there are new communication regulations. All calls are recorded. All phone calls recordings saved. What’sApp is monitored. Facebook is monitored. All social media forums are monitored,” the page posted yesterday.

“Inform those who don’t know. Your devices are connected to the Ministry’s systems. Take care not to send unnecessary messages. Inform your children about this and to take care,” the controversial post also mentioned.

The post was quickly shared by many users on Facebook, with some questioning its credibility, while others feared it was true.

Interestingly, the page which has been active for at least six months was removed from Facebook in the evening after the directorate was notified. Anyhow, no further information was available on the individuals running the page.

It’s noteworthy that several pages online, especially on Facebook, claim to be operating under the umbrella of the Government. Many of the news posted by these pages were proven wrong by the authorities in the past.