Initial Findings
Initial analysis of the data showed widespread praise of Nazi ideology as well as frequent use of racial and homophobic slurs. The Global Project Against Hate and Extremism reported that there were 28,382 mentions of the N-word in the direct messages of users alone.
Further Examination
Further examination of the data revealed employees from leading tech giants, academia, and military among the site’s users. One user, who had an image of the Nazi sunwheel symbol as their profile picture, appears to work as a professor at a private Christian liberal arts school in North Carolina. They describe themselves as an “Unapologetic National Socialist” in their Poast bio.
Another user, who uses a Nazi “Totenkopf” skull for her profile picture, appears to run a daycare center in Georgia. The woman frequently reposted another user named “DustyShekel” who promoted Nazi-themed “Swastika Soap” bars on a separate antisemitic website.
What's next?
The data leak from Poast raises serious concerns about privacy and security, as well as the spread of hate speech and extremist ideologies. It serves as a reminder of the importance of protecting personal information and being vigilant about online security.