In light of revelations that their company’s platform was used by Russian actors during the 2016 election, Facebook executives have embarked on an extensive public-relations rehabilitation campaign. Last month, C.E.O. Mark Zuckerberg appeared in a rare Facebook livestream to discuss steps the company would take to ensure that it wouldn’t be compromised again. Part of that effort, Zuckerberg explained, would require hiring a small army of staff whose explicit job would be to safeguard against the kind of cyber psy-ops that Russia deployed so effectively—an effort that, as Bloomberg reported Monday, appears to be taking shape.

According to Bloomberg, Facebook is actively seeking employees with national-security clearances. Said hires could include former government contractors or intelligence officials, who are highly sought after for private-sector jobs:

Workers with such clearances can access information classified by the U.S. government. Facebook plans to use these people—and their ability to receive government information about potential threats—in the company’s attempt to search more proactively for questionable social-media campaigns ahead of elections, according to [a person familiar with the matter], who asked not to be identified because the information is sensitive. A Facebook spokesman declined to comment.

Job candidates with such clearances are often former government and intelligence officials or contractors. The status can carry over to private-sector jobs, as long as the position still requires access to sensitive information. Previously granted clearances become inactive when intelligence workers leave government employment, but they can be reactivated on Facebook’s behalf, the person said.

It’s a logical, if radical, step for a company that has found itself at the center of the Russia melodrama roiling Washington. Facebook has come under intense scrutiny after disclosing early last month that a Kremlin-linked firm bought $100,000 in ads with politically divisive messaging in order to sway the 2016 election. Such actions by foreign agents are of particular interest to special counsel Robert Mueller and congressional investigators; Facebook is among a group of tech companies expected to testify before Congress on November 1 regarding Russian use of its platform. Meanwhile, after a meeting with Facebook C.O.O. Sheryl Sandberg, the House Intelligence Committee said it will release the Facebook ads as soon as possible.

Hiring from a pool of candidates with high-level clearances is likely part of the new, albeit slightly disturbing normal for Facebook; last month, during his live-streamed video, Zuckerberg reassured viewers that the tech giant was “working to ensure the integrity of the German elections” happening days after his broadcast, “from taking actions against thousands of fake accounts, to partnering with public authorities like the Federal Office for Information Security, to sharing security practices with the candidates and parties.” The company’s decision to wade into nation-state territory is a startling reminder of the outsize power it wields . . . and of how few checks and balances are in place to prevent it from abusing that power.