Big Tech 'complying' with federal requests to preserve evidence on social media amid Capitol riot probe

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EXCLUSIVE: Big Tech companies are "complying" with federal law enforcement requests to "preserve evidence" on their platforms as part of federal investigations into the Capitol riot earlier this month, Fox News has learned. 

A federal law enforcement official told Fox News that officials have been in communication with Big Tech companies including Google, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Apple and Parler.

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"When the platforms are used to facilitate criminal activity, we need their full cooperation and assistance to ensure preservation," the official told Fox News.

The official told Fox News that "a lot" of the cases stemming from the Capitol riot on Jan. 6 "have a social media connection," saying, in certain situations, individuals "blasted" items related to the violence and unrest on social media platforms, which they then attempted to delete after investigations were opened.

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The official told Fox News that all of the companies, to date, have been "complying" with federal requests for assistance.

"Right now, every one that we have requested assistance from, in terms of preserving evidence, have assisted us," the official said. "We trust and hope that they will continue to assist us in that."

A Facebook company spokesperson told Fox News that they are "continuing" their "ongoing, proactive outreach to law enforcement and have worked to quickly provide responses to valid legal requests." 

"We are removing content, disabling accounts, and working with law enforcement to protect against direct threats to public safety," the Facebook spokesperson told Fox News. 

And a Twitter spokesperson told Fox News that they "continue working closely with law enforcement and government partners, including the FBI, DHS and others to help mitigate potential risks and counter shared threats, including those specifically relating to planned future demonstrations across the country." 

The Twitter spokesperson also told Fox News that they are "expediting law enforcement requests related to the attack at the US Capitol on January 6 in line with our guidelines for law enforcement requests." 

"These relationships are longstanding and go beyond any one event," the Twitter spokesperson said. "Our consistent collaboration with law enforcement and government partners spans a number of issues, including the propagation of violent activity, attempts at platform manipulation, election integrity issues, and more." 

Twitter also told Fox News that throughout the 2020 election, the company "collaborated extensively" with federal agencies.

Meanwhile, the FBI told Fox News earlier this week that it is "reviewing" congressional requests for investigations specifically into the social media companies, after House Oversight Committee Chair Carolyn Maloney, D-N.Y., demanded the bureau investigate Parler, and Republicans on the committee claimed that request was a "transparently political ploy," and demanded the FBI investigate Facebook and Twitter, too.

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Maloney requested the FBI investigate Parler’s "role" as a "potential facilitator" of planning or inciting the violence at the Capitol on Jan. 6, whereas the Republicans on the committee said Parler, Twitter and Facebook "seem to all share blame in allowing their platforms to be used to plan for the January 6 riot."

Neither Facebook nor Twitter responded to Fox News’ request for comment regarding a potential FBI investigation into the platforms.

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But Parler COO Jeffrey Wernick said the company "welcomes" a "robust examination of our policies and actions" by the bureau.

"Like other social-media platforms, we have been cooperating and will continue to cooperate with law-enforcement efforts to identify and prosecute those individuals responsible for organizing and carrying out the shameless Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol.

"Parler welcomes Rep. Maloney’s call to have the Federal Bureau of Investigation conduct a robust examination of our policies and actions," Wernick said.