ISIS Propaganda App Disseminated Online

There has been a never-ending slew of terrorism-related events these past 2 years. More than that, the ongoing air raids and general unrest in Syria are a daily reminder that there are terrorism-related wars going on. After the recent Paris bombing, as well as the recent shooting in California, ongoing terrorist activity is definitely a painful reality. And it looks like the people behind these acts of destruction are looking to take their fight and their cause deeper into the technological realm.

In a previous, related report, we noted that the Paris bombings were aided by terrorist communications over the Playstation Network. Just this Dec. 7, The Telegraph reported that the Islamic State (Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, ISIL, Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, ISIS) has taken to employing its very own Android smartphone app, strengthening the way it spreads its propaganda via online and electronic channels.

The app has not been released on the Google Play Store, of course, as Google and most other tech and app companies are certainly vigilant about letting terrorist groups use their channels. Instead, the group has been distributing its app via Telegram messages.

Telegram, a WhatsApp competitor, has encryption functions. More than allowing users to send and receive encrypted messages, the app also lets users send messages that self-destruct within a set time frame. This, then, allows terrorist groups to send, receive and spread messages that may go undetected.

The Telegraph report notes, though, that Telegram itself has shut down and banned dozens of ISIL-used channels, in its effort to help out with disbanding terrorist activities. These efforts, however, don’t seem to be enough, as the terrorist group has been noted to use even unencrypted messages to communicate its moves.

This news comes as a chilling development that threatens to disrupt the equilibrium and semblance of peace that the rest of the world enjoys. Private citizens continue to be affected in the growth of the terrorist groups. ISIL has been known to be technologically savvy, employing the use of social media, and even Google ads in their efforts to disseminate its propaganda. The best that netizens can do to protect themselves would be to keep their passwords secure, employ the use of two-factor authentication and keep themselves informed. Meanwhile, world leaders are calling on the tech companies’ cooperation, and hopefully, they’ll cooperate with the efforts against terrorist activities.

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More from The Telegraph report: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/news/12036736/Islamic-State-releases-its-own-smartphone-app.html

The Droid Report on how technology is used to advance both terrorist activity and how it is also used to keep netizens and private citizens safe: https://www.droidreport.com/role-tech-world-events-11695

Why 2-Factor Authentication is crucial in protecting oneself in the wired universe: https://www.cnet.com/news/two-factor-authentication-what-you-need-to-know-faq/

https://www.imore.com/heres-why-you-should-turn-two-factor-authentication

https://www.duosecurity.com/product/why-two-factor-authentication

More on the California shooting: https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/california-shooting-male-female-suspects-6944415

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Photo Credits:

https://joselromero.com/isis-smart-app/

https://twitter.com/MichaelSSmithII/status/673885130377703424