© Yara Nardi | Reuters
Russians and Iranians woke up Friday morning to strange spam text messages encouraging them to report any evidence of interference in the United States election to the U.S. State Department — and offering a hefty financial incentive to do so.
"The United States pays up to $10 million for any information on foreign interference in American elections," the messages read in Russian and Farsi.
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced the generous reward a day earlier, citing efforts by "Russia and other malign actors." the State Department said the Rewards for Justice program would provide a $10 million reward for information leading to the identification of those who attempt to disrupt the U.S. election at the behest of a foreign government. In the announcement, the department encouraged recipients to contact the nearest U.S. embassy or consulate.
A link appended to some of the Russian messages leads to the Russian version of the Rewards for Justice verified Twitter account, according to the Russian outlet Meduza. The messages reportedly appeared scattered across the vast country in cities like Saratov, Krasnodar, Ulyanovsk, Chelyabinsk, Perm, Yekaterinburg, and Tyumen.
Comment: It's a pretty useless tactic. But domestically it gives the impression that the Trump administration is doing something to prevent dastardly and mostly fictional 'Russian interference'. Just look at the press response to the 'Russian bounties in Afghanistan' nonsense to see why something like this might be seen to be necessary. Even the flimsiest rumor is taken up by the MSM with zeal, putting Trump on the defensive for 'not doing something' about it. It's total nonsense, but that's politics.