By Steve Ambrose
While nations contemplate dropping bombs in Syria to combat Islamic State, one hacker group is using a tried and true Internet weapon to stifle terrorist propaganda: trolling.
GhostSec has taken down an active ISIS website, operating on the Dark Web, and replaced the propaganda forum with an advertisement for the antidepressant drug Prozac, The Guardian reported Nov. 25.
“Too Much ISIS. Enhance your calm. Too many people are into this ISIS-stuff. Please gaze upon this lovely ad so we can upgrade our infrastructure to give you ISIS content you all so desperately crave,” the GhostSec ad reads.
The Dark Web consists of networks not publicly available on the Internet without special software that allows users to gain access. One of the common types of software used to access the Dark Web is Tor, an encrypted site that allows users to browse the web anonymously.
The Guardian reports GhostSec had originally taken the website down Nov. 21, but ISIS found a way to restore the site.
#Boom https://t.co/X03RYffD7E is gone #GhostSec @TorReaper @GhostSecPI #OpParis #OpISIS pic.twitter.com/r1ogaOSaGB
— רוח רפאים בעילום שם (@IsraelsACG) November 21, 2015
GhostSec states that the purpose of the group “is to eliminate the online presence of Islamic extremist groups such as Islamic State (IS), Al-Qaeda, Al-Nusra, Boko Haram and Al-Shabaab in an effort to stymie their recruitment and limit their ability to organize international terrorist efforts.” ISIS has been driven into the hidden parts of the Internet, in part, because its content is blocked or erased from digital groups like Twitter and Facebook. In the wake of the Paris attacks, the hacktivist group Anonymous has also been feverishly shutting down ISIS social media accounts, with the group claiming responsibility for dismantling over 20,000 terrorist affiliated accounts.
We’ve taken down more than 20,000+ #ISIS Twitter, 2500+ ISIS-affiliated websites have been destroyed. #OpIceISISUpdate
— Operation ISIS (@OpIceISIS) November 20, 2015
In addition to Twitter, the secure messaging app Telegram recently shut down 78 ISIS related accounts Nov. 18. Telegram has become a popular tool for terrorists because the app is designed to protect communication channels from third parties.
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