Militant Group IS Now Using AI To Bolster Online Presence & Gather Support

Digital experts have stated that militant groups like IS are using AI and they are testing the limits of safety controls on social media platforms.

An online researcher recently reported that his team discovered chatbots imitating deceased or imprisoned IS militants.

Source : Freepik/morzaszum

Islamic State (IS), a militant group, that allegedly carried out a fatal attack on a Russian Concert Hall back in March, has now turned to the use of artificial intelligence (AI) to bolster its online presence. According to reports, around 140 people lost their lives in that attack, and just days after this, a video surfaced in which a man clad in military fatigues and a helmet appeared to celebrate the assault. However, the man who appeared in the video was apparently not real but rather was AI-made. 

Federico Borgonovo, a researcher at the Royal United Services Institute, a London-based think tank, debunked the video and reportedly traced it to an IS supporter who was active in the group’s digital ecosystem. Site and some other online researchers also agreed to this and said that the video was AI-made. By using AI these groups are trying to increase their online presence and gather support.

IS Supporters Use AI

According to these online researchers, an IS supporter combined statements, bulletins and data from IS's official news outlet to create this fictional man. This is not the first time when IS has used AI, though but, this sure was an 'exception to the rules'. According to Borgonovo, one of the most basic rules of IS when it comes to the use of AI apparently is that the production quality should not be that high. He said that this video was an exception to the rules, even if the content was not as violent as we might see in other videos.

He said, “It’s quite good for an AI product. But in terms of violence and the propaganda itself, it’s average.”

Digital experts have stated that militant groups like IS are using AI and they are testing the limits of safety controls on social media platforms. 

Earlier in July, a security source informed Reuters that France had identified around a dozen ISIS-K operatives based in countries surrounding Afghanistan. These individuals, who maintain a significant online presence, are actively attempting to persuade young men in European nations to carry out attacks domestically rather than travelling abroad to join the group.

Daniel Siegel, an investigator at the social media research firm Graphika, reported that his team discovered chatbots imitating deceased or imprisoned IS militants. He informed the Thomson Reuters Foundation that it remains uncertain whether these bots originated from IS itself or from its supporters, but their potential threat is nonetheless significant.