The Vulnerabilities of Online Terrorism

Torres-Soriano, Manuel Ricardo

doi:10.1080/1057610x.2012.656345

Cited by 32 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 4 publications

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“…In a post 9/11 world, there is a vast array of literature debating the various merits of using the label ‘new’ to describe the ways in which, and means by which, modern terrorist groups operate (e.g. Cottee and Hayward, 2011; Klausen, 2015; Torres Soriano, 2012). While arguments have been advanced for key aspects of contemporary terrorism having historical antecedents (e.g.…”

Section: Terrorism As Theatre: Understanding ‘New’ Terrorism By Its E/affectsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Since it can be used for data mining, networking, recruitment, mobilisation, instruction, planning and fund-raising the internet is a performative and exhortatory platform par excellence (Knorr Cetina, 2005; Michael, 2013; Tsfati and Weimann, 2002; Weimann, 2005, 2012). For Torres Soriano (2012: 263), the truly revolutionary contribution of networked media has been ‘the manner in which [it] has transformed the propaganda dimension of terrorist groups, turning their age-old dream of direct, intermediary-free communication with their potential “public” into a reality’. In some ways, the development of networked media freed terrorist organisations from any former dependencies on mainstream media and inverted the traditional media pyramid, ‘turning journalists into ideal victims rather than useful conduits for spreading the message’ (Klausen, 2015: 20).…”

Section: Terrorism As Theatre: Understanding ‘New’ Terrorism By Its E/affectsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The Islamic State’s symbolic war: Da'esh's socially mediated terrorism as a threat to cultural heritage

Smith

Burke

Leiuen

et al. 2015

Journal of Social Archaeology

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Using the Islamic State/Da'esh as a case study, we identify the genesis of a new form of terrorism arising from the convergence of networked social media and changes in the forms of conflict. Socially mediated terrorism is defined as 'the use of social and networked media to increase the impact of violent acts undertaken to further a social, political and/or religious cause with the aim of creating physical, emotional or psychological suffering that extends beyond the immediate audience'. Our analysis distinguishes three strategies involving cultural heritage. The first is smoke, mirrors and mock destruction, which exaggerates perceptions of power and tests the impact of potential destruction. The second is shock, awe and censure, which uses international outrage to cloak the Islamic State with an aura of invincibility and highlight the impotence of its opponents. The third is financing the Kaliphate, which has transformed the ad hoc looting of archaeological sites into a business model. Iconoclasm has a lengthy history in which cultural icons were destroyed with the primary aim of subjugating local populations/audiences. In contrast, the Islamic State's promotion of cultural heritage destruction through networked social media is directed simultaneously towards local, regional, and international audiences with reactions from one audience used to subdue, embolden or intrigue another. As such, networked social media can be viewed as a fresh -and currently under-rated -threat to cultural heritage in conflict zones. Finally, we draw

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Section: Terrorism As Theatre: Understanding ‘New’ Terrorism By Its E/affectsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Terrorism As Theatre: Understanding ‘New’ Terrorism By Its E/affectsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Islamic State’s symbolic war: Da'esh's socially mediated terrorism as a threat to cultural heritage

Smith

Burke

Leiuen

et al. 2015

Journal of Social Archaeology

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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“…A substantial literature expounds on the Internet's many presumed benefits for international terrorists in particular (Weimann 2006;Nacos 2002;Seib and Janbek 2011). Technological pessimists, by contrast, highlight the risks and problems terrorists face online (Amble 2012;Conway 2006b;Diani 2000;Kenney 2010;Torres-Soriano 2012;Zanini and Edwards 2001). This study sides with the pessimists by highlighting one of the most fundamental of these challenges, namely, the trust problem.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Interpersonal Trust on Jihadi Internet Forums

Hegghammer¹

2021

Preprint

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This chapter explores the effects of the trust problem on jihadi internet discussion forums. The scarcity of non-verbal cues in digital communication facilitates deceptive mimicry, which undermines the interpersonal trust required for sensitive transactions. Open-source data from Arabic-language jihadi forums between 2006 and 2011 indicate that distrust there was high and direct recruitment rare. General trust also declined over time as policing of the forums increased. As of 2014, forums are still in use, but primarily for low-stake activities such as propaganda-sharing and ideological debate, not recruiting or operational coordination. Confidence in the authenticity of propaganda remained relatively high, due to vetting institutions and hard-to-fake video formats. A modicum of interpersonal trust also remained, thanks to reputation systems and a few relatively reliable signs of trustworthiness involving time expenditure. The trust problem is an Achilles heel for high-risk activists online, including pro-democracy activists in authoritarian settings.

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“…Concerns about authenticity however did not stop intelligence agencies such as Great Britain's MI6 from taking an active interest in, and even working actively to disrupt, the distribution of Inspire through corrupting the file containing the magazine. 16 In the RAND Corporation study by Brian Michael Jenkins on terrorism and terrorist recruitment, Inspire is again the only publication featured. In this study Jenkins showed that terrorist suspects in the US tend to be young, male, and Muslim which appears to be the demographic The magazine's influence has been seen in Australia too, where in April 2013 Adnan…”

Section: One Especially Interesting Development In Inspire That Sets mentioning

confidence: 99%

InspireMagazine: A Critical Analysis of its Significance and Potential Impact Through the Lens of the Information, Motivation, and Behavioral Skills Model

Lemieux¹,

Brachman

Levitt

et al. 2014

Terrorism and Political Violence

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The Vulnerabilities of Online Terrorism

Cited by 32 publications

References 4 publications

The Islamic State’s symbolic war: Da'esh's socially mediated terrorism as a threat to cultural heritage

The Islamic State’s symbolic war: Da'esh's socially mediated terrorism as a threat to cultural heritage

Interpersonal Trust on Jihadi Internet Forums

InspireMagazine: A Critical Analysis of its Significance and Potential Impact Through the Lens of the Information, Motivation, and Behavioral Skills Model

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