MI6 chief Richard Moore (Stefan Rousseau/PA)
(Picture: PA Wire)The head of MI6 has revealed his frustration at Wordle spoilers being shared on social media.
Richard Moore, the Chief of the Secret Intelligence Service, tweeted that he was “thinking” of unfollowing Twitter accounts guilty of giving away the day’s answer.
His tweet sparked a playful response from the UK’s digital spy body GCHQ, which replied with one of the game’s graphics overlaid with the word “sorry”.
Wordle has become an online phenomenon with millions of daily users since launching last month and boasts celebrity fans including BBC anchor Dan Walker and TV author Richard Osman.
On Tuesday, the New York Times announced they had bought Wordle or a sum “in the low seven figures”.
Thinking of unfollowing those who post their #Wordle results…
— Richard Moore (@ChiefMI6) February 2, 2022
Mr Moore’s Wordle challenges marked a moment of light relief for the chief of the security services as they attempt to respond to a rapid buildup of Russian troops near the Ukrainian border.
Boris Johnson visited Kiev on Tuesday amid growing fears of an invasion, warning Russian President Vladimir Putin to “step back from the brink” or face severe economic sanctions.
Wordle requires players to guess a five-letter word within six guesses, with grey, yellow and green coloured bricks used to indicate if guessed letters are part of the answer and whether they match the right place in the correct word.
https://t.co/sEV4CXBisC pic.twitter.com/1lwOHD7tNx
— GCHQ (@GCHQ) February 2, 2022
Once solved, players are able to share their own results on social media via rows of the same coloured bricks but with the letters removed.
It means that others can see how they did without having the puzzle ruined for them – a feature that has been attributed to the rapid rise of Wordle’s popularity.
Creator Mr Wardle, who lives in New York but was born in Wales, announced the sale to the New York Times on Twitter.
He thanked users for sharing touching stories about the effect the game has had on their lives and relationships and adding that he was “thrilled” about the takeover.
