Social Media As A Threat


It is almost impossible to connect with the world if you are not on social media. Actually, most of the opportunities are provided through such platforms; from job opportunities, to business deals, to learning opportunities. The effectiveness of the media makes it possible for everyone to rely on it for many things. However, terrorists have also taken advantage of the benefits of social media to cause unrest in the world. Using this media, the terrorists plan attacks, raise funds for their agenda, get relevant information, and even incite violence in some areas. For such reasons, social media is a big security threat in the world.

It was a devastating moment on twitter as the world watched the beheading of a respected American journalist in 2014. Images of how his throat was cut, how his head was removed, and how it was later placed on his body were all made available on Twitter. Soon afterwards, leading jihadists made more threats of killing more journalists on the same platform. True to their word, they provided the graphic images of some journalists who had faced a traumatic moments before and during their death. These threats have continued today as jihadists prepare for war and other criminal activities.

It is almost impossible for a global jihad movement to develop if there is no social media. The terrorists need it more than any other group or individual. Radicalization of the young jihadists happens over the social media through the provision of graphic images and messages. Interestingly, the jihadists are fully aware that their activities are always monitored by the security agencies. Yet, they continue with these activities on the same media on a regular basis. Most security agencies and the social media owners argue that allowing these people to continue with their activities on the media may help with intelligence gathering.

The terrorist groups such as ISIS and Al-Qaeda have tried all manner of tactics to advance their agenda using the social media. Early in 2015, they managed to hack into Twitter’s account, causing a stir in many countries and in leadership forums. It is not impossible for them to hack into other social media platforms and cause political and social unrests on a global context. Obviously, many people and governments would wish for the terrorism problem to be tackled for once and for all especially in consideration of its costs so far. However, the problem cannot be solved as long as the terrorists are still using social media to advance their agenda. Therefore, social media remains a big threat to the world’s security.

 
 
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