CYBER SAFETY CREATING A SAFER


AND MORE SECURE ONLINE ENVIRONMENT


Study provides crucial insights into early detection and intervention strategies as online extremism continues to pose challenges globally


In a groundbreaking study, researchers at the University of Bath have unveiled a method to identify potential terrorists through their social media activity. Published in the Personality and Social


Psychology Bulletin, the study marks the first of its kind in pinpointing early indicators of terrorist actions among far- right extremists. By analysing over 200,000 social media posts spanning from 2011 to 2019, the team identified distinct signals in the online behaviour of individuals who later committed far-right terrorist acts.


and explicit calls to violence were key markers predicting future criminal actions, sometimes up to four years in advance. “Our research shows we can identify people on social media who go on to commit extremist action by picking up on posts that are about acquiring know-how and developing capability to commit


“Our research shows we can identify people on social media who go on to commit extremist action by picking up on posts that are about acquiring know-how and developing capability to commit terrorism.”


Dr Olivia Brown, associate professor in Digital Futures and deputy director of the Bath Institute for Digital Security and Behaviour, emphasised posts focusing on logistics, operational planning (including knowledge about weapons and evading law enforcement),


36 | POLICE | OCTOBER | 2024


terrorism. This method can help identify people that are genuinely dangerous and likely to cause physical harm as opposed to those that are likely to contain their extremism to radical views and hate speech online.”


The research built a unique database of social media posts. These were taken from 26 convicted terrorists and from 48 individuals who held extremist views but had not engaged in offline violence. Surprisingly, discussions solely centred on far-right ideology and expressions of hate speech were found to decrease the likelihood of these individuals transitioning from online rhetoric to physical acts of terrorism. Dr Brown highlighted the significance of their findings in light of increasing concerns


raised by senior US and UK police officials regarding the motivations behind terrorist actions. They cautioned that a fascination with violence, rather than ideological fervour, is becoming a primary driver for terrorism in some cases.


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