Islami State Terror Group (ISIS) has reportedly launched an app to spread it terror agenda, adding teeth to its internet growth and social media presence.
The app, called ‘’Amaq News’’ features news and videos showing executions and battlefield victories from the terror group. Discovered by hacking collective Ghost security group the app is designed to “streamline access” to the terrorist group’s “propaganda”.
According to a report by Fortune, the Android-based app is essentially a news portal, run by the Amaq News Agency, a group believed to be tied to ISIS.
When users start it up, the app displays a scrolling news feed and icons to play videos. For added convenience, the app includes the ability to change font size and has options for users to have the feed automatically check for new posts. It can even be automatically updated whenever the app’s developers send out new versions of the program, the report said.
Ghost Security Group is said to have discovered the app after infiltrating a channel run by ISIS on the encrypted messaging service Telegram.
Last month, Fortune also reported how some of the world’s most feared terrorist organizations are using an encrypted chat-like service known as Telegram to communicate. The report, which was mainly focused on ISIS reported how Telegram had blocked 78 ISIS-related channels across 12 languages on its service.
“Content shared on Telegram channels goes beyond the mere re-posting of jihadi groups’ propaganda, and includes tutorials on manufacturing weapons and launching cyberattacks, calls for targeted killing and lone-wolf attacks, and more,” the report said “Some channels, such as those belonging to ISIS, show various levels of coordination among them, even using bots to aid their efforts.”
Telegram is an online service that allows users to send messages, photos, videos, and files of any kind to up to 200 people in so-called “channels.” The service also supports Private chatting is also and what makes it different from sites like WhatsApp is its commitment to privacy. All messages sent through the service are fully encrypted, providing practically no way for a third party to access them. The service also includes a self-destruct feature that will let users send a message or file and have it automatically destroyed in a set amount of time.
The launch of this app by the militant group should however not come as a surprise. The group has previously been using Twitter for propaganda and other communication.
Another bad news for humanity. Who will stop them?