With the progression of technology, the intricacies of organized crime has become increasingly ubiquitous.
This has taken form most prominently amongst terrorist groups.
The Internet has served as a lucrative platform for terrorists ever since their activity online began - as "Going Dark: Terrorism on the Dark Web" explores - beginning in the late 1990s. Commonly through social networks, terrorist groups reach out to and empower large audiences through their rhetoric and images. Additionally, they have assembled online resources for means of fundraising and coordinating for their terrorist organizations.
In the article, Gabriel Weimann explores an even more daunting shift for terrorism -- a move to the Dark Web. Due to its anonymity, the Dark Web seems to be an appealing place for terrorists to store data, collaborate, and coordinate -- with much less risk of being monitored or traced by government agencies. Weimann compares the Dark Web being like a "treasure trove" to terrorists.
In recent times, terrorist use of social media sites such as YouTube, Facebook, and Instagram has been widely noticed. These sorts of platforms helped these groups gain momentum, audience, and voice. However, in July 2015, the FBI stated that ISIS is now also using the Dark Web as a tool for igniting global attacks.
Upon the arrest and interrogation of Ali Shukri Amin for operating pro-ISIS online accounts, he was asked: "Why are people asking about how to use TOR?" to which he responded --
"To be anonymous online, they don't want the government seeing what they do and getting them in trouble."
The article discusses terrorist activity post- November 2015 Paris attacks turning to the Dark Web in order to shield the identities of terroist supporters. This was in response to ISIS-associated websites being seized by the Operation Paris campaign. Soon after these were taken down, an encrypted ISIS forum post provided its followers with detailed information and explanations for accessing their Dark Web site.
A little over a year before the Paris attacks, in August 2014, the article cites a report of a laptop belonging to a member of ISIS being stolen by rebels.Within, several speeches and thousands of jihadi documents were discovered -- most of which had been published on the Dark Web. One such document discussed the making and distribution of "chemical or biological agents in a way to impact the biggest number of people."
Watch this video to learn more about ISIS/ISIL use of the Dark Web and other encrypted applications for their propaganda.