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Facebook's friend suggestions helped connect extremists
When you think of internet giants fighting terrorism online, there's a good chance you think of them banning accounts and deleting posts. However, their friend suggestions may prove to be just as problematic. Researchers have shared a report to the Telegraph revealing that Facebook's "suggested friends" feature has been connecting Islamic extremists on a routine basis. While some instances are almost expected (contacting one extremist brings up connections to others), some of the suggestions surface purely by accident: reading an article about an extremist uprising in the Philippines led to recommendations for "dozens" of local extremists.
France jailed a man for visiting pro-ISIS websites
France's mercurial relationship with technology and the internet is in the news once again. This time it's because a man was going to pro-ISIS websites with regularity. Facing a two year sentence, the suspect said that he was simply curious and wanted to "tell the difference between real Islam and the false Islam," France Bleu reports.
Hacker faces 20 years in prison for helping ISIS
The US just broke new ground in its bid to fight pro-terrorist hackers. A judge has sentenced Kosovo citizen Ardit Ferizi to 20 years in prison for hacking a US company in order to collect information about 1,300 government and military personnel and help ISIS create a hit list. It's the country's first conviction for terrorism-related hacking, according to Assistant Attorney General John Carlin. Ferizi pleaded guilty on June 15th, roughly 8 months after Malaysian police arrested him on the US' behalf.
Twitter and YouTube wouldn't delete an extremist cleric's posts (update: gone)
Internet giants have been increasingly willing to take down extremist content, but their previous reluctance is coming back to haunt them. The UK recently convicted radical cleric Anjem Choudary (and co-defendant Mohammed Rahman) of rallying support for ISIS, and court documents have revealed that neither Twitter nor YouTube agreed to take down key content. Twitter hasn't deleted his account, for example, despite British law enforcement's claims that it violates Twitter policies on promoting terrorism -- even after he was arrested in September 2014. It pulled Rahman's, but not in sync with an official request.
Twitter was quick to pull extremist tweets following Nice attack
Twitter's response to online extremism has changed a lot in the past few years. Observers at observer groups like the Counter Extremism Project report that the social network was exceptionally speedy in removing pro-extremist accounts and tweets in the hours following the truck attack in Nice, France on July 14th. It moved with "swiftness we have not seen before," CEP says. Twitter hasn't commented on the specific actions, but it's apparent that the company is serious about its ban on terrorism.
ISIS' Twitter traffic reportedly dropped 45 percent in 2 years
If you ask the US government, the efforts to stifle ISIS' online propaganda are paying off. The White House reports that the extremist group's Twitter traffic has dropped 45 percent in the past 2 years, owing to both attempts to keep accounts offline and a surge of countering messages. To some extent, it was just a matter of getting up to speed. Officials admit that they made mistakes early on in fighting ISIS' online messaging (such as producing a lot of opposing statements in Engilsh), but they say they've both made more relevant content and done a better job of coordinating internet campaigns with its military strategy.
ISIS worries that fake Android apps are spying on its ranks
ISIS' attempts to disseminate its extreme message through mobile apps might be backfiring. Motherboard has learned that the group is warning members of fake, malware-laden versions of its Android apps that allegedly spy on users. While it's not clear who's creating the apps (besides "dubious sources"), it's implied that at least one government is trying to snoop on ISIS through unsuspecting members. Those militants can't just stick to 'official' sources to be safe, either -- ISIS' official channels frequently go down, so many of those backing the group's hateful cause have no choice but to go through unofficial routes.
US launches its first cyberattacks against ISIS
The US no longer thinks that it's enough to hurt ISIS through airstrikes and cutting off propaganda channels -- it's starting a full-on digital warfare campaign. Cyber Command is launching its first attacks against ISIS' digital infrastructure in a bid to disrupt its communications and other basic functions. According to New York Times sources, this includes everything from imitating commanders to interrupting payments to fighters. This, in turn, could slow down ISIS as it second-guesses its moves for fear of being led into an American trap.
Twitter reportedly struggles to keep ISIS accounts offline
Twitter may be having some success in reducing ISIS' online presence, but it's undoubtedly facing an uphill battle. Threat intelligence outlet Recorded Future estimates that Twitter deleted over 26,000 pro-ISIS accounts in March, but saw 21,000 accounts created that same month. That's three times as many new accounts as ISIS supporters made back in September. If the figures are accurate, they suggest that Twitter is fighting to keep above water -- it can only do so much to purge accounts that are frequently recreated shortly after they're removed.
Pro-ISIS hackers threaten Facebook and Twitter over crackdowns
Surprise: ISIS isn't happy that social networks are taking down accounts sympathetic to its cause. Vocativ has obtained a video from a pro-ISIS hacking group that threatens retaliation against Facebook and Twitter for joining the US' campaign to fight online terrorist propaganda. The clip insists that the group will take 10 accounts for every one that Facebook or Twitter shuts down, and promises to eventually "delete" the sites entirely. There's also a segment where images of Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg and Twitter's Jack Dorsey are riddled with bullet holes.
Report: ISIS's Twitter propaganda efforts have stalled
The Islamic State isn't having much luck recruiting new members online these days. Twitter suspended 125,000 accounts sympathetic to the jihadist organization between June and October of last year and it appears to be making an impact, according to a study being released Thursday by George Washington University's Program on Extremism.
ISIS help desk tells jihadis how to hide from authorities
The encrypted messaging service Telegram blocked 78 ISIS channels in 2015, but new ones just keep popping up. As detailed in a report provided to The Hill, the group has evolved an expanded technical "help desk" that can provide instructions to jihadists on how to escape the surveillance of Western authorities. It's operated by a group of ISIS members collectively called the Electronic Horizon Foundation (EHF), which was launched on January 30th. As of the beginning of this week, its Telegram channel had 2,200 members, although it hasn't posted much yet.
US leaders meet with tech CEOs to fight terrorism online
The US is determined to knock terrorists offline whenever it can, and it's about to go to great lengths to make sure that happens. Business Insider, the Guardian and the Wall Street Journal understand that some of the country's highest-ranking officials are meeting with the CEOs of internet giants like Apple, Facebook, Google, Twitter and Yahoo to ask for stronger efforts to fight online terrorist activity. And we do mean high-ranking -- the directors of the FBI, National Intelligence and the NSA will be involved, as will the Attorney General and the White House's chief of staff.
ISIS' online presence reportedly includes a 24-hour 'help desk'
The terrorist group known as ISIS has ramped up its online outreach efforts in a big way over the past year, including establishing a 24-hour help desk that teaches members how to use encryption and other secure communications tactics, NBC News reports. News of the help desk comes from Dr. Aaron Brantly, a cyber fellow at the Combating Terrorism Center with the US Military Academy at West Point. According to Brantly, ISIS has "developed a series of different platforms in which they can train one another on digital security to avoid intelligence and law enforcement agencies for the explicit purpose of recruitment, propaganda and operational planning."
Anonymous goes to war with ISIS over Paris attacks
In the wake of ISIS' coordinated attacks on Paris Friday night that left 129 civilians dead and scores more injured, the loosely-affiliated hacker collective known as Anonymous announced Sunday the launch of a massive cyber-campaign, dubbed #OPParis, designed to scrub the terrorist organization's influence from the internet while French airstrikes wipe ISIS strongholds off the map. "We can not fight them with guns and rifles," an Anonymous spokesperson told the BBC, "stopping their propaganda is an effective way to weaken their manpower and their presence in the Internet."
