Europol action day against content aimed at radicalizing minors

On 27 May this year, Europol organized a day of action against the exploitation and radicalization of minors through online content. More than 2,000 links to jihadist, right-wing extremist and terrorist propaganda aimed at minors were reported.

The authority has been warning for some time that organized crime networks are increasingly recruiting minors. At the end of April, Europol also set up a task force to combat violence-as-a-service and the recruitment of young offenders by organized crime. “Protecting children from recruitment and exploitation by criminal networks is a top priority,” emphasizes Europol in its communication on the day of action.

New approaches by terrorist organizations

According to law enforcement officials, terrorist organizations have developed new tactics for recruiting followers. They customize messages and invest in new technologies and platforms to reach and manipulate minors. The use of AI, particularly to create images, texts and videos, is intended to appeal to a younger audience. Propagandists invested in carefully styled content, short videos and memes “to appeal to minors and families who may be vulnerable to extremist manipulation”. They also invested in content that combined “playful elements with terrorist audio and video material”.

In another type of targeted content, the masterminds glorify minors involved in terrorist attacks. Terrorist propaganda is aimed primarily at male youths to encourage them to join extremist groups by promoting heroic sagas and portraying them as warriors and the hope of society. Less surprisingly, extremists are less likely to target female minors, with their role essentially limited to raising and indoctrinating future fighters “for the cause”.

Another manipulation technique Europol mentions is the victim role and victim narrative, sometimes illustrated with wounded or killed children in conflict zones. This serves two purposes: It leads to emotional identification with the victims, while at the same time fueling the need for retaliation and further violence. Numerous countries took part in the day of action: Albania, Austria, Belgium, Bosnia-Herzegovina, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Germany, Ireland, Malta, Portugal, Serbia, Slovenia, Spain, Ukraine, and the United Kingdom.

(dmk)