Telegram app ‘top choice’ for |IS recruiters
THE HIGHLY encrypted Telegram application, an instant messaging service, has become a favoured medium for terrorist organisations to spread their propaganda and recruit members, a terrorism observer has said.
“Telegram is the app of choice for terrorists because its encryption and privacy protections are more stringent than other applications,” Jakarta-based Institute for Policy Analysis of Conflict director Sidney Jones said.
She added that Bahrun Naim, an Indonesian fighting in Syria alongside the Islamic State (IS) group, often used the public channel available on the app to give an instructions for amaliyah, a term that is often used by extremist groups to mean an attack or suicide bombing.
Indonesian terrorist suspects have reportedly admitted during police interrogations that they received information about radical teachings via the app. Sidney said a private IS-related group on the app could consist of up to 5,000 Indonesians.
“It is relatively faster to send and receive content through this app and thus recruiters use this feature to spread propaganda videos glorifying the idea of a caliphate,” she said.
Another reason why Telegram is used is because the app is more independent. Other social media platforms are thought to be affiliated with governments crackdowns on terrorism-related activities, Jones said.
