As Telegram Blocks 78 IS-Linked Accounts, New Ones Pop Up

Advertisement
By Reuters | Updated: 19 November 2015 16:32 IST
As Telegram Blocks 78 IS-Linked Accounts, New Ones Pop Up
Mobile messaging service Telegram is racing to shut down broadcast channels used by Islamic State to promote its causes and recruit members, but the group is creating new channels apparently just as quickly.

Berlin-based Telegram, created two years ago by the founder of Russia's most popular social network site Vkontakte, has caught on in many corners of the globe as an ultra-secure way to quickly upload and share videos, texts and voice messages.

Two months ago, a new public broadcast feature of Telegram became the preferred method for Islamic State to broadcast news and share videos of military victories or sermons, according to security researchers.

The group used Telegram to claim responsibility for the Paris attacks, which left 129 people dead, and the bombing of a Russian airliner over Egypt last month, which killed 224.

(Also see:  Islamic State Makes Telegram Messaging App a Major Marketing Tool)

In a statement published on its site on Wednesday, Telegram said it has been able to identify and block 78 IS-related broadcast channels in 12 languages on its site.

Advertisement

"We were disturbed to learn that Telegram's public channels were being used by ISIS to spread their propaganda," it said.

The company's statement appeared an hour after Reuters published a piece detailing Islamic State's use of Telegram.

Advertisement

Some of the IS sites blocked by Telegram quickly re-emerged in new locations on its network. Some were quickly shut down, while other relocated channels remained running.

Alex Kassirer, a counter-terrorism analyst with the New York-based private intelligence firm Flashpoint, said IS had begun using Telegram channels in recent months to broadcast press releases aimed at recruiting and inspiring followers.

Advertisement

Some of the dozens of channels set up drew as many as 16,000 followers, said Rita Katz, director of Bethesda, Maryland-based extremist monitoring service SITE Intelligence Group. Some of those channels can no longer be reached, and a message was displayed saying they were no longer available.

Unlike Twitter, which has closed thousands of accounts tied to Islamic State for violating company rules, until Wednesday Telegram had appeared to let the jihadists operate without fear of being turned off or traced, Katz said.

Telegram, which did not respond to requests for comment, explicitly says on its site that it makes efforts to block Islamic State.

Fighting a different fight
The company statement stressed that shutting IS channels on the site was not taken to restrict free speech, which its ultra-secure messaging site is designed to encourage.

"While we do block terrorist bots and channels, we will not block anybody who peacefully expresses alternative opinions," Telegram said.

But IS supporters continue to take advantage of private members-only channels on Telegram to spread word of the new public propaganda channels.

One newly set-up channel in English called Trendit, has nearly 500 followers so far, while other jihadi channels aimed at Islamic State supporters in Indonesia remained up, analysts said.

"The problem with blocking Telegram groups, like suspending Twitter or Facebook accounts, is that it becomes a game for IS supporters to see how fast they can get up another account," said researcher Sidney Jones, who runs think-tank in Jakarta called the Institute for Policy Analysis of Conflict.

It is often as simple as changing a letter or adding a number, then "shouting out" the new name to other followers online, she said.

Telegram was set up by the two brothers who founded VKontakte.

Pavel Durov, 31, the frontman, and his brother Nicolay, 34, the technical talent, were inspired by former National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden's battle against widespread Internet surveillance and their own run-ins with Russian authorities.

© Thomson Reuters 2015

 

For the latest tech news and reviews, follow Gadgets 360 on X, Facebook, WhatsApp, Threads and Google News. For the latest videos on gadgets and tech, subscribe to our YouTube channel. If you want to know everything about top influencers, follow our in-house Who'sThat360 on Instagram and YouTube.

Advertisement

Related Stories

Popular Mobile Brands
  1. iQOO Z10 Lite 5G With 6,000mAh Battery Launched in India: Price, Features
  2. Vivo X200 FE Launch Date, Colours, and Design Revealed Ahead of Launch
  3. Redmi Pad 2 With 11-Inch 2.5K Display, 9,000mAh Battery Launched in India
  4. OnePlus Nord 5 and Nord CE 5 Colour Options, Key Features Leaked
  5. Nothing Phone 3 to Be Equipped With the Snapdragon 8s Gen 4 SoC
  6. Samsung Galaxy M36 5G to Launch in India Soon; Design, Price Range Teased
  7. ChatGPT on WhatsApp Can Now Generate Images, But There's a Catch
  8. Nothing Headphone 1 Price, Colour Options Leaked Ahead of Launch
  9. Apple Back to School Offer Brings Discounts on iPad Air, Other Products
  10. Trump Mobile T1 Phone With 5,000mAh Battery Announced; See Price, Features
  1. Apple Bringing Journal App to iPad and Mac With iPadOS 26 and macOS 26 Tahoe
  2. Ancient Scrolls Found in Qumran Caves Unlock Secrets of Jewish History and Biblical Texts
  3. Ancient Xiaohe Burials Uncovered: Boat Coffins, Cattle Symbols, and More
  4. Supernovas May Have Triggered Deadly Ancient Climate Shifts, and They Could Happen Again
  5. Astrophotographer Captures Stunning Portrait of Lagoon and Trifid Nebulas in Glowing Detail
  6. NSF’s DKIST Captures Sharpest-Ever Images of Fine Solar Magnetic Striations
  7. Microsoft Says Next-Gen Xbox Will Run on AMD Chip, Not Be 'Locked to a Single Store'
  8. Redmi Pad 2 With 11-Inch 2.5K Display, 9,000mAh Battery Launched in India: Price, Specifications
  9. iQOO Z10 Lite 5G With MediaTek Dimensity 6300 SoC, 6,000mAh Battery Launched in India: Price, Specifications
  10. Google Pixel 10 Series to Reportedly Get a Faster Ultrasonic Fingerprint Sensor
Gadgets 360 is available in
Download Our Apps
Available in Hindi
© Copyright Red Pixels Ventures Limited 2025. All rights reserved.