Is this the new age of terrorism? Terrorist groups are making use of the massive influence of social media. The ISIS groups that have long been a topic of focus has now taken their efforts to social media, targeting Western Muslims. Three young British Muslims are currently missing because of what is thought to be social media targeting by ISIS. They boarded flights from London to Istanbul without notifying anybody. |
The propaganda messages spread over social media often contain horrific violence — even beheadings —, often meant to inspire people with ‘borderline personalities’ to act out violently. They also circulate images of life in ISIS territories as being utopian to Muslims but also harsh and violent toward those who fail to conform to this twisted form of Islamic law. “Many of these girls are not allowed out, or to do certain things in society,” said Quilliam Foundation’s managing director, Haras Rafiq. “When they are online, they are being targeted by messages of empowerment.” |
ISIS groups have gone to social media platforms such as Twitter, Facebook and Ask.fm. A forthcoming study performed by the Brookings Institution estimates that at least 46,000 Twitter accounts were used in Fall 2014 to support ISIS. Twitter has actively been suspending these accounts, meaning that number may now be lower, but they still generate more than 200,000 tweets per day. Some of these account holders are members of ISIS while others are supporters from around the globe.
However, thanks to the cracking down of social media platforms, these ISIS campaigns are weaker than ever. Not only has Twitter suspended accounts but Facebook and YouTube have also been working to delete their pages and their propaganda.
ISIS has also found a new, unexpected enemy in hacker groups such as Anonymous, the infamous group behind many recent DDoS (distributed-denial-of-service) attacks. Anonymous accounts using the hashtag #OpISIS have joined together in an effort to take down ISIS's social media accounts and create a campaign against them. The war on terror is increasingly an ideological one being fought online by social media users.
Unfortunately, ISIS is still very real outside social media. Cracking down online is only a portion of the battle. ISIS publicly claims that they are already victorious — attempting to project strength, perhaps attracting more followers. This attempt at a public image is yet another campaign strategy. As the international front against radicalism and terror continues, it is vital that we not allow this evil to infiltrate our social media channels, so that the promotion of violence and death may finally cease.
-Katherine Sinner, Contributing Writer
ISIS has also found a new, unexpected enemy in hacker groups such as Anonymous, the infamous group behind many recent DDoS (distributed-denial-of-service) attacks. Anonymous accounts using the hashtag #OpISIS have joined together in an effort to take down ISIS's social media accounts and create a campaign against them. The war on terror is increasingly an ideological one being fought online by social media users.
Unfortunately, ISIS is still very real outside social media. Cracking down online is only a portion of the battle. ISIS publicly claims that they are already victorious — attempting to project strength, perhaps attracting more followers. This attempt at a public image is yet another campaign strategy. As the international front against radicalism and terror continues, it is vital that we not allow this evil to infiltrate our social media channels, so that the promotion of violence and death may finally cease.
-Katherine Sinner, Contributing Writer