Russia has been gathering information about ordinary Americans, and no one knows why

Election meddling.
(Image credit: iStock)

As Russian agents were working to influence the 2016 presidential election, they were also quietly harvesting data about ordinary Americans and small businesses, The Wall Street Journal reports. Using fake Facebook and Instagram accounts associated with activist or interest groups like the Black Lives Matter movement or "Southern heritage," Russian "trolls" collected names, phone numbers, email addresses, websites, and even videos of Americans who believed they were simply joining databases or earning free promotion.

"Russian intelligence services … can sit back and collect from thousands of miles away," explained Leo Taddeo, the chief information security officer of the cybersecurity firm Cyxtera Technologies. "The more they know about us, and what we care about, the better they can sharpen their influence campaigns."

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In one particularly startling case, an Orlando-based fitness instructor was paid $700 by the puppet group Black4Black to teach self-defense lessons and turn over videos, phone numbers, and email addresses of the people who showed up. The instructor said he turned over photos and videos but didn't pass on contact information, and he eventually cut ties with Black4Black when it pushed him to teach more "aggressive" lessons, like offensive combat. Read more about the efforts to gather Americans' personal data at The Wall Street Journal.

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Jeva Lange

Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.