Lawmakers press Facebook, TikTok, and Truth Social over threats against FBI

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The House Oversight Committee wants major social media platforms to quickly address the surge of online threats against law enforcement after the FBI searched Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago home.

On Friday, the lawmakers sent letters to eight major social media companies asking for information about the number of threats against law enforcement made on their platforms.

Lawmakers wrote to the platforms asking for details on how they identify and respond to online threats. They asked for copies of any ads that were reported to or targeted at law enforcement officials. Several users on Truth Social called for civil war and violence towards law enforcement. They noted posts from sitting Republican congressmen like Paul Gosar, who demanded that Congress destroy the FBI.

The lawmakers wrote that they were concerned that reckless statements by the former President and Republican Members of Congress have unleashed a flood of violent threats on social media that have already led to at least one death and pose a danger to law enforcement officers. Any threats of violence against law enforcement that appear on your company's platforms need to be addressed immediately.

Federal authorities sounded the alarm last week about the growing number of online threats against law enforcement. State, local, and tribal law enforcement officials across the country received a joint intelligence bulletin from the FBI and Department of Homeland Security. The threats were being made mostly online and across multiple platforms, according to the bulletin.

An increase in online threats could lead to real world violence against law enforcement officials. The authorities highlighted alarming posts made by a Truth Social user shortly after the search who later attempted to break into an FBI field office.

The First Amendment rights of all Americans to speak out about the actions of their government and law enforcement are supported by the committee. It's against the law to make threats and encourage violence.

The FBI has been accused of planting evidence and other wrongdoing by Trump. After being kicked off most major social media platforms after the January 6th attack on the Capitol last year, Trump launched the platform, whose downloads have skyrocketed, according to a new report from Vice.