Crime

How Instagram is exposing ISIS

Published

9 years ago

September 22, 2017

Islamic State militant group (ISIS) supporters are leaving behind digital footprints as they continue to share stories on Instagram, and intelligence agencies are happy colleting the data.

According to Newsweek, an analysis from the software research company Ghost Data revealed that pro-ISIS accounts numbered more than 50,000 on Instagram and that hundreds of those accounts are giving away geo-location data on the app.

The Jihadists are using Instagram Stories, a feature that allows users to post images and video that last for 24 hours.

Ghost Data collected 180,000 Stories, finding that 55,000 were related to pro-ISIS content. Of those, the report said, more than 500 Stories connected to 290 accounts contained information about their location—information that could help security services.

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“When They Disclose Their Location In Europe, This Is Gold For Intelligence,” Andrea Stroppa Of Ghost Data Told The Daily Beast.

Newsweek reported the pro-ISIS supporters were providing their exact coordinates; in other cases they were giving an idea of what cities and areas of the world they were in, particularly in a northern Italian city.

Others showed pro-ISIS supporters in Russia and France, according to screenshots shown to the news site.

Stroppa said that the radical Islamists were using the Instagram app because the post self-delete after a period of time.

The feature allows them to reach their target audience and to have their message widely consumed before it is removed.