These are the most popular social apps used by ISIS

A recent report by Motherboard has uncovered the most popular social media platforms among ISIS members.

Since the catastrophic expansion of IS in 2014, the terrorist group has been a complex but organized machine on social media—from its long stay on Twitter, temporary stays on lesser-known platforms like Friendica and Diaspora, and its recent exploitation of Telegram.

And on these platforms, users demonstrate simultaneous “blackouts,” responses, and use of talking points. But when it comes to IS attackers and coordinators’ use of encrypted messaging programs, things suddenly get chaotic.

As a result of safety concerns, fear of monitoring, and the amount of options available, it would seem that there is in-fighting amongst the terrorist organisation as to which app is the best.

Following the successful Paris and Brussels attacks coordinated with Whatsapp, there has been a massive push by security experts within ISIS to move away from the platform as a result of security concerns.

The Twitter account of “Al-Khabir al-Taqni,” a jihadi supporter and self-described security expert, ranked 33 mobile messaging applications from unsafe, moderately safe, safe, and safest.

Viber, Wechat and Whatsapp can all be found near the very bottom of the list, with the self-published “Amaq Agency” (news) and “al-Bayan” (radio streaming) at the top of the list.

This hasn’t stopped ISIS members from using messengers like Whatsapp however, primarily because of its massive popularity worldwide.

This any-app-will-do tendency by IS and its minions adds further complication to fighting terror in the age of smartphones, not to mention a bit of a wrench into already-empty arguments for regulating encrypted messaging platforms.