Reality bytes: cyberterrorism and terrorist 'use' of the Internet

This paper examines the concept of cyberterrorism. Fringe activity on the Internet ranges from non-violent 'Use' at one end to 'Cyberterrorism' at the other. Rejecting the idea that cyberterrorism is widespread, the focus here is on terrorist groups' 'use' of the Internet, in particular the content of their Web sites, and their 'misuse' of the medium, as in hacking wars, for example. Terrorist groups' use of the Internet for the purpose of inter-group communication is also surveyed, partly because of its importance for the inter-networked forms of organisation apparently being adopted by these groups, but also due to the part played by the Internet in the events of September 11 and their aftermath

Recalibrating the War on Terror by Enhancing Development Practices in the Middle East

I takt med stigande oljepriser har ett av Sveriges största odlingsföretag Svegro bestämt sig för att byta ut sitt nuvarande värmesystem. Svegro består idag av växthus på ca 50 000 m2 på Thorslunda gård, Färingsö. Uppvärmningen sker idag med hjälp av oljeeldning samt den värmeenergi som omvandlas från växthuslampor. Det nya värmesystemet kommer att använda sig av ett annat förbränningsalternativ än mineralolja. Detta kommer göra det möjligt för Svegro att sänka sina energikostnader och minska miljöpåverkan genom reducerat koldioxidutsläpp. Kraven som ställs är att det nya värmesystemet ska kunna integreras med det befintliga värmesystemet och samtidigt leva upp till dagens ekologiska krav. Målet med bytet av värmesystem är att sänka energiförsörjningskostnaderna men också att klara av framtida högre ställda krav och miljömålsättningar. För att avgränsa rapporten har tre olika förbränningsalternativ behandlats där alla passar bra med den nuvarande vattenburna värmelösningen. Alternativen består av bioolja, pellets och flis. För att bestämma det bästa alternativet har en jämförelsestudie mellan de olika bränslena gjorts där faktorer som investeringskostnader, miljöpåverkan och bränsleeffektivitet beaktats. Utifrån analyserna av resultaten i rapporten föreslås pellets som det bäst lämpade systemet för Svegros anläggning. Enligt livskostnadsanalysen i rapporten kommer det nya systemet att ha betalat av sig efter 1,5 år och efter det kommer besparingar på ca 5,5 miljoner kr göras per år jämfört med om det befintliga systemet skulle bevaras. Det nya bränslet kommer utöver ekonomiska besparingar även minska CO2-utsläppen med ca 2300 ton per år. Konsekvenserna av att välja pellets som förbränningsalternativ är att man måste kombinera pelletsförbränningen med en biooljeuppvärmning, detta för att växterna ska klara av att överleva extremt kalla vinterdagarna.While the oil price continues to increase, one of Sweden’s largest indoor growing companies Svegro has decided to replace their existing heating system. Svegro is a large green house with an area of approximately 50 000 m2 and is located at Thorslunda gård, Färingsö.The heating system today uses mineral oil and the heat from assimilation lamps. The new system will be using an alternative combustion fuel to the expensive mineral oil. This will make it possible for Svegro to lower their energy costs and reduce their environmental effect by lowering the emissions of carbon oxide.The requirements are that the new heating system should be able to be integrated with the already existing system and at the same time live up to today´s ecological requirements. The goal of replacing the heating system is to reduce the energy costs but also to manage future demands and environmental ambitions. In order to define some limitations for the reports we have chosen three different combustion options where all alternatives fit with the present heating distribution. The combustion options are biological oil, wood pellets and wood chips. To determine the best option a comparison between the different fuels has been done considering factors such as investment costs, environmental impact and fuel efficiency.Based on the analyzed results we suggest that wood pellets will be the most suitable fuel for Svegros facility and heating system. According to the lifecycle cost the new system will have paid off itself after 1,5 years. The savings made each year from changing fuel will be approximately 5,5 million SEK per year compared if the oil still was used. The new fuel will in addition to the financial savings also reduce the carbon dioxide emissions by 2300 tons per year.The consequence of choosing wood pellets as combustion fuel is that you have to combine the pellet burning with biofuel combustion. The combination will make it possible for the plants to survive extremely cold weather conditions during the winter

Countering Expansion and Organization of Terrorism in Cyberspace

Terrorists use cyberspace and social media technology to create fear and spread violent ideologies, which pose a significant threat to public security. Researchers have documented the importance of the application of law and regulation in dealing with the criminal activities perpetrated through the aid of computers in cyberspace. Using routine activity theory, this study assessed the effectiveness of technological approaches to mitigating the expansion and organization of terrorism in cyberspace. The study aligned with the purpose area analysis objective of classifying and assessing potential terrorist threats to preempt and mitigate the attacks. Data collection included document content analysis of the open-source documents, government threat assessments, legislation, policy papers, and peer-reviewed academic literature and semistructured interviews with fifteen security experts in Nigeria. Yin\u27s recommended analysis process of iterative and repetitive review of materials was applied to the documents analysis, including interviews of key public and private sector individuals to identify key themes on Nigeria\u27s current effort to secure the nation\u27s cyberspace. The key findings were that the new generation of terrorists who are more technological savvy are growing, cybersecurity technologies are effective and quicker tools, and bilateral/multilateral cooperation is essential to combat the expansion of terrorism in cyberspace. The implementation of recommendations from this study will improve the security in cyberspace, thereby contributing to positive social change. The data provided may be useful to stakeholders responsible for national security, counterterrorism, law enforcement on the choice of cybersecurity technologies to confront terrorist expansion, and organization in cyberspace

The roles of “old” and “new” media tools and technologies in the facilitation of violent extremism and terrorism

This chapter describes and discusses the roles of media tools and technologies in the facilitation of violent extremism and terrorism. Rather than focusing on how media report on terrorism, we investigate how extremist and terrorist groups and movements themselves have exploited various “traditional” and “new” media tools, from print to digital, outlining the significance that they have had on extremists’ ability to mark territory, intimidate some audiences, connect with other (sympathetic) audiences, radicalize, and even recruit. Underlined is that violent extremists and terrorists of all stripes have, over time, used every means at their disposal to forward their communicative goals. Also worth noting is that ‘old’ media tools are not extinct and while ‘new’ media play a prominent role in contemporary violent extremism and terrorism, ‘old’ tools—everything from murals to magazines—continue to be utilized in tandem with the former

UNITING U.S. AGENCIES TO FIGHT THE ILLICIT USE OF CRYPTOCURRENCY

In 2022, the Biden administration published an executive order in which the growing use of digital assets was deemed a national security threat. While this thesis focuses on cryptocurrency, it is more broadly about how the United States can—and should—employ a whole-of-government approach to counter a continuously evolving and adapting threat environment. This thesis begins by examining several assumptions regarding malign actors’ adaptations, the adoption and use of emerging technologies by these actors, and strategies for the United States in applying its instruments of power to combat these developments. The research assumes that many adversarial entities engage in multiple activities, such as terrorism, insurgency, and criminality; as these organizations form new alliances, they are also developing new evasion techniques; and this increasingly amorphous threatscape, defined by new malign alliances and technological tools, will require the United States to utilize the entire homeland security enterprise, from the Department of Defense to law enforcement, to confront these actors. This thesis utilizes these assumptions as a foundation to construct an informed policy options analysis that puts forth potential, long-term frameworks to counter this growing diversity of threat actors and their use of increasingly technical and sophisticated tools of evasion.Civilian, Department of Homeland SecurityApproved for public release. Distribution is unlimited