Nova Abin will monitor the social networks of anti-democratic groups

Identifying and monitoring anti-democratic and extremist groups on social networks will be one of its priorities for the new Brazilian Intelligence Agency (Abin). The aim is to prevent attacks on the Brazilian State, such as those that occurred in January.

Agency will undergo an overall strategy overhaul to escape military tutelage, with the help of experts from universities. In addition, Abin will contribute intelligence to aid public policy, such as pointing out bottlenecks in family farming to combat extreme poverty.

The unit, which will be subordinate to the Department of Civil Homes, will address issues such as global warming, deforestation in the Amazon, attacks on indigenous peoples, illegal mining and environmental threats to soybean plantations.

At the beginning of the Lula government, the appointed deputy director of the institution, Saulo Moura da Cunha, was exonerated, while the commander of the institution was not elected. Instead, federal police officer Alessandro Moretti will assume temporary command of the agency.

ABIN history

Brazil’s intelligence service was established in 1927. however, when Abin was created as a civilian intelligence agency, it underwent a reform in the government of Fernando Henrique Cardoso. However, the agency was dominated by the military, subordinate to the Institutional Security Cabinet (GSI), the former Military House.

During the 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Games, the agency was responsible for coordinating the work of the Foreign Services Intelligence Center, which was successful in preventing counter-terrorism acts.

President Dilma tried to give state intelligence a civilian character, but was unsuccessful. Under his direction, Abin caught investigating local leaders and NGOs. The agency failed to prevent or explain how the presidency was tapped by the US government.

During the Temer government, the agency did not expect the truck drivers’ strike. Already under Bolsonaro, he tried to extract data from all National Driver’s Licenses (CNH), but did not notice from the presidential entourage that the Brazilian Air Force (FAB) planes were carrying cocaine.