Iran accuses Kim Kardashian of working with Instagram CEO to corrupt Iranian women

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Andrew Feinberg

White House Correspondent

Kim Kardashian-West has become something of an unstoppable global force and pop culture icon. But if breaking the internet wasn’t enough, the reality TV star, model and businesswoman has now reportedly been accused of corrupting Iranian society.

Iran's Organized Cyberspace Crimes Unit has accused Kardashian West of working with Instagram’s CEO to corrupt Iranians.

According to an article published on IranWire - a website run by Iranian citizen journalists - the unit believes Kardashian West is working on behalf of Instagram’s CEO Kevin Systrom to “target young people and women”.

“Ms Kim Kardashian is a popular fashion model,” Mostafa Alizadeh, the spokesman for the Organized Cyberspace Crimes Unit, was quoted as saying in a news program on Sunday night.

“So Instagram’s CEO tells her, ‘make this native’. There is no doubt that financial support is involved as well. We are taking this very seriously.”

Alizadeh also reportedly said: “Foreigners are behind it because it is targeting families. These schemes originate from around the Persian Gulf and England. When you draw the operational graph, you will see that it is a foreign operation.”

While the idea Kardashian West is a spy might be something which is tempting to laugh off, there has been an ongoing effort known as “Operation Spider II” to crack down on Instagram posts the authorities deem “un-Islamic”. According to the BBC, they’ve been monitoring around 300 Instagram profiles, as well as 50 hair salons, modelling agencies and photography studios and eight people have been arrested so far.

Instagram and a representative for Kardashian West did not immediately respond to request for comment.