Report
The Role of Police Online in PVE and CVE
September 18, 2023This paper is written for police wanting an overview of their online PCVE options, and is based on the RAN POL meeting on ‘The role of police online’ that took place on 1-2 March in Oslo. ...
Tweet… If You Dare: How Counter-Terrorism Laws Restrict Freedom of Expression in Spain
September 18, 2023Social media users, journalists, lawyers and musicians have been prosecuted under Article 578 of the Spanish Criminal Code, which prohibits “glorifying terrorism” and “humiliating the victims of terrorism”. Although this provision was first introduced in 2000, it is only in recent years, following its amendment in 2015, that prosecutions and convictions under Article 578 have ...
Islamic State’s English-language Magazines, 2014-2017: Trends & Implications for CT-CVE Strategic Communications
September 18, 2023Islamic State (IS) has used English-language magazines as a crucial component of its propaganda strategy, particularly targeting Muslims living in the West. This paper provides a quick reference guide to IS’s English-language magazines released between June 2014 and September 2017 examining key themes and propaganda strategies deployed across three issues of Islamic State News, four ...
Encouraging Counter-Speech by Mapping the Contours of Hate Speech on Facebook in India
September 18, 2023Efforts at Countering Violent Extremism (or CVE in internationally accepted terminology) online have become an important focus for all social networks. CVE targets violent, extremist ideologies at their core, tackling them via alternate narratives that focus on peace-building through community interaction. It has thus become an invaluable tool to supplement counterterrorism strategies worldwide. ...
Iraq Information Controls Update: Analyzing Internet Filtering and Mobile Apps
September 18, 2023We have examined two mobile applications that have received significant attention in coverage of the Iraq insurgency. The first, FireChat, is a U.S.-developed mobile messaging platform that facilitates off-the-grid messaging; features which make it ideal in situations where Internet access is restricted, and that has resulted in growing user numbers in Iraq. However, it is ...
Terror in the Dark: How Terrorists Use Encryption, the Darknet, and Cryptocurrencies
September 18, 2023This report demonstrates how terrorists and extremists have utilised the Darknet to mask their communication and propaganda efforts, to recruit and radicalise, and to gain material benefits such as illicit goods, including, but not limited to, weapons and fraudulent documents. In addition, this report notes the growing tendency of these individuals to utilise cryptocurrencies for ...
Fool me Once: How Terrorists Like and Rely Upon the “See no Evil, Hear no Evil” Business Model of Google Facebook and Instagram
September 18, 2023The latest Digital Citizens Alliance investigation exposes the fallacy that much, if anything, has changed. Partnering with the Global Intellectual Property Enforcement Center (GIPEC), Digital Citizens has reviewed dozens of examples of how terrorist organizations continue to rely on digital platforms such as Google, Facebook, YouTube and Instagram to promote hate speech and recruit. What ...
Spiders of the Caliphate: Mapping the Islamic State’s Global Support Network on Facebook
September 18, 2023This report analyzes the strength of the Islamic State’s (IS) network on Facebook using online network measurement tools and uncovers the myriad of ways in which IS operates on Facebook. To do so, we mapped the accounts and connections between 1,000 IS-supporting Facebook profiles with links to 96 countries on every continent except Antarctica using ...
Violent Radicalisation and Far-Right Extremism in Europe
September 18, 2023This volume has been made possible by the valuable collaboration between two esteemed organisations, namely SETA and Hedayah. Their collaboration was embodied in the form of a research project that aimed at shedding light on the burning issue of the violent radicalisation and extremism of individuals and groups that belong to – or at least ...
Online Extremism
September 18, 2023The internet can leave users vulnerable to social challenges, which creates opportunities for extremism to spread. Users can be exposed to extremism in multiple ways, including through recruitment and socialisation. Extremist content may be found on mainstream social media sites and ‘alt-tech’ platforms, which replicate the functions of mainstream social media but have been created ...