GNET

An ‘Ode to Violence’: Extremist Exploitation of Viggle AI - GNET

Silvano Rizieri Lucini, Alessandra Pugnana, and Grazia Ludovica Giardini examine how generative AI tools like Viggle AI are used to create youth-focused extremist propaganda, highlighting the online glorification of violence in the extreme right, the True Crime Community, and Salafi-Jihadi circles.

Extremist Nasheeds: Emerging Subcultures and the Cultivation of Radical Online Communities in Southeast Asia - GNET

Drawing on open-source intelligence, Nurrisha Ismail explores how nasheeds – Islamic hymns – are exploited by violent extremist actors, and rendered linguistically accessible by regional pro-Islamic State (IS) supporters as a tool for building radical online communities in Southeast Asia.

Undermoderated and Overlooked: Arabic Online Content on the Bondi Beach Attack - GNET

In retrospect on the Bondi Beach attack in December 2025 targeting members of the Jewish community, Dr. Margareta Wetchy and Dr. Omar Mohammed examine two core narratives drawn from selected Arabic-language content on X and TikTok.

Warning Behaviours for Right-Wing Violent Radicalisation on Online Platforms: Conceptual Challenges and Empirical Findings - GNET

New research from the RadiGaMe project examines accelerationist right-wing communication on Telegram.

Group Dynamics in Far-Right Telegram Communities: A (Worthy) Challenge for Radicalisation Research - GNET

Drawing on Project RadiGaMe, @uschwertberger.bsky.social, Simon Greipl, and @dianarieger.bsky.social examine how far-right groups on Telegram function as social systems.

📢 For more on this topic: Join GNET & RadiGaMe tomorrow (19 Feb, 16:00 GMT / 11:00 EST) for a webinar - last reminder!

Welcome! You are invited to join a webinar: 2025 Working Group Output Launch Event. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email about joining the webinar. Join GIFCT for an event highlighting the 2025 Working Group outputs. GIFCT Working Groups were launched in 2020 to facilitate multistakeholder dialogue, foster understanding, and produce outputs to ...

It will be presented at the upcoming GIFCT 2025 Working Groups Launch Event Webinar tomorrow, Wednesday, February 18th, at 17:00 GMT/12:00 PM EST.

Authored by @isdglobal.bsky.social and published in collaboration with @gifct.bsky.social, this policy paper provides an overview of the threat landscape posed by violent nihilistic communities online and outlines implications for platform measures to protect users effectively.

Beyond Extremism: Platform Responses to Online Subcultures of Nihilistic Violence - GNET

📕 GNET is thrilled to share the publication of a new policy paper, 'Beyond Extremism: Platform Responses to Online Subcultures of Nihilistic Violence.'

Extremist Content Curation: Moderation Challenges on Pinterest and Means to Move Forward - GNET

Today, Alessandro Bolpagni and Grazia Ludovica Giardini examine the persistent presence of Islamic State propaganda on Pinterest, and the need for more effective platform-level counter-strategies.

🗓️ We are less than a week away from our next webinar, 'Beyond the Channel: Mapping Individual Risk and Collective Dynamics in Far-Right Radicalisation on Telegram.'

Join us on Thursday, 19th February at 16:00 GMT/11:00 EST by registering at the link below. 💻

From Confusion to Extremism: How Deepfakes Facilitate Radicalisation - GNET

In today’s Insight, Georgia Lala explores how the “crisis of knowing” caused by deepfakes can act as a radicalisation vector towards extremism.

Telegram Stars: Exploring Micropayment Exploitation, Digital Goods and the Evolving Tactics of Terrorist Financing - GNET

Today, Laurence Bindner and @einfal.bsky.social examine how terrorist groups exploit in-app currencies and creator economy tools.

GNET Webinar – Beyond the Channel: Mapping Individual Risk and Collective Dynamics in Far-Right Radicalisation on Telegram - GNET

🗓️ Join GNET & the #RadiGaMe Project for a webinar on Thursday, 19th February 2026 at 16:00 GMT/11:00 EST.

The webinar will feature two presentations examining far-right radicalisation processes and violent extremism on Telegram. 💻

Details and registration ⤵️

Shock and Awe: Geopolitical Disruption and Terrorist Narrative Opportunism Online - GNET

Following the U.S. capture of Nicolás #Maduro, @smdvd.bsky.social explores a trend in which geopolitical events are repurposed as symbolic anchors within violent extremist narratives online.

Escape The Void: Responding to Youth-Led Nihilistic Violence - GNET

Amid growing international concern over Nihilistic Violent Extremism (NVE), Pierre Sivignon examines the characteristics and drivers of this emerging classification and explores how existing prevention and intervention strategies could be adapted to enhance effectiveness among young people.

“Agentic Smurfing”: How AI-Autonomous Micro-Laundering is Outpacing Traditional Terrorist Financing Detection - GNET

In this analysis, Daria Alexe breaks down the technical mechanics of agentic laundering, highlights its growing adoption by ISKP and pro-Hamas networks, and shares actionable countermeasures for technology platforms and regulatory authorities.

The Moscow Oblast School Stabbing: Digital Rehearsal, Gaming Communities, and Youth Pathways to Violence - GNET

In our latest Insight, Harrison Pates from @csns-uk.bsky.social discusses the online activity and manifesto of the Moscow Oblast School attacker to unpack the motivations and ideological drivers behind the event.

Read his analysis below:

From Defence to Offence: How Anti-Drone Technologies Are Empowering Militants in a New Era of Coordinated Drone Warfare - GNET

Today, Imtiaz Baloch and Esham Farooq aim to examine coordinated #drone attacks in #Pakistan with a specific focus on the anti-drone capabilities of militant groups, assessing their strategic intent and technological evolution.

3D-Printed Warfare: A New Phase in Jihadist “Do-It-Yourself” Innovation Targeting the West? - GNET

Adding to the dialogue on 3D-printing technologies and jihadist actors, Sergey Elkind analyses the potential security threats linked to the production of firearms and UAV components, highlighting risks for Western countries.

The Moscow Oblast School Stabbing: Understanding Hybrid Radicalisation and Transnational Online Subcultures - GNET

Nodirbek Soliev analyses the #MoscowOblast School Stabbing by examining how the personal grievances of the attacker and his exposure to ideological bricolage drawn from Western far-right milieus contributed to this case of deadly performative violence.

Testing Resilience: Can the Proposed EU Drone Wall Defend Against Extremist Actors? - GNET

Nina Kurt analyses whether the growing use of drone technology by extremist actors poses a threat to the EU #Drone #Defence Initiative.

The Nordic Front of ‘764’: Trends, Drivers, and Countering Youth Exploitation and Radicalisation - GNET

"What begins as an American, largely online phenomenon, thus becomes a portable script for violence that can be adopted by teenagers in any country with the same platforms and subcultures."

Tremendous work by @valdemarballe.bsky.social for @gnetresearch.bsky.social.

Understanding Cyberhacktivist Radicalisation: A Socio-Psychological Approach - GNET

Sonja Belkin examines the phenomenon of cyberhacktivism.

She assesses the threat horizon for radicalisation into extremism-driven cyberhacktivism and proposes behavioural science interventions that may limit recruitment among vulnerable individuals.

The Exploration of Dialogue-Based AI Interventions in P/CVE: Opportunities, Limits, and Lessons - GNET

Today, Kevin Marc Blasiak draws on early observations from an ongoing research programme to explore the potential of #AI chatbot interventions, such as dialogue-based agents, to address gaps in the current online intervention landscape.

Modern Warfare: The Islamic State’s Emerging Drone Instruction Ecosystem - GNET

Today, Muskan Sangwan examines what Modern Warfare - a #drone-focused instructional series - reveals about how the Islamic State and its supporters now approach technical training.

New @gnetresearch.bsky.social insights:

➡️ Could Chatbots Seduce Us into Extremism?
➡️ You Talkin’ to Me? Algorithmic Mirrors & Chatbot Radicalisation
➡️ How the Islamic State Leverages Instagram for Fundraising

More: gnet-research.org/insights/

#GNET #CVE

The Jakarta Bombing: Youth Digital Radicalisation and the Urgent Need for Adaptive PCVE Responses - GNET

New from Chevy Atha Khairan on the November attack at #Jakarta's State Senior High School. He analyses the digital influences that underpinned the radicalisation of the perpetrator, and offers recommendations for how PCVE practitioners can further incorporate AI into proactive responses.

The Nordic Front of ‘764’: Trends, Drivers, and Countering Youth Exploitation and Radicalisation - GNET

As part of GNET's 2026 thematic research focus on online subcultures of nihilistic violence, our first Insight of the year examines the troubling rise of 764 in the #Nordic region.

The authors, including, @valdemarballe.bsky.social present a timeline of cases and new data on activities in Denmark.

Cutting a Hydra’s Head: Infrastructure-Level Content Moderation and the Case of Kiwi Farms - GNET

On 18 Nov 2025, a major Cloudflare outage disrupted access to X, ChatGPT, and major retail and financial sites, yet Kiwifarms remained online. Alexander Yen traces how post-deplatforming migration hardened the site’s infrastructure, raising questions about relying solely on CDN-level interventions.

Cosplaying Columbine: How Memetic Violence Transformed Southeast Asia’s Extremist Threat - GNET

In the wake of the 7 Nov attack at SMAN 72 in Jakarta, Munira Mustaffa expertly analyses the emergence of memetic violence in SE Asia, whereby perpetrators appropriate the aesthetics and methodologies of notorious Western attackers through online exposure rather than ideological commitment.