Authored by Ken Silva via The Epoch Times,

Recent Department of Homeland Security (DHS) decisions to monitor trucker protests and link domestic terrorism to misinformation have prompted backlash from some conservatives and civil libertarians, but DHS Counterterrorism Coordinator John Cohen defended his department's actions at a Feb. 15 online event.

The DHS's Feb. 7 bulletin warned of a heightened terrorism threat because of "false and misleading narratives," misinformation, and "conspiracy theories."

"The United States remains in a heightened threat environment fueled by several factors, including an online environment filled with false or misleading narratives and conspiracy theories, and other forms of mis- dis- and mal-information introduced and/or amplified by foreign and domestic threat actors," the bulletin said.

Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) reportedly accused the DHS of "policing" speech in a Feb. 15 letter, while Center to Advance Security in America (CASA) is probing the department over its methodology for crafting the bulletin, according to the Washington Times.