India Has Evidence of Terror Financing through Social Media Platforms (UPSC Current Affairs)

Relevance: GS3 - Role of Media and Social Networking Sites in Internal Security Challenges, Basics of Cyber Security; Money-Laundering and its prevention.

(Source: The Hindu, 11/18/2022)

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Why in the news?

• Recently, Director-General of the National Investigation Agency (NIA) said that India has evidence of social media platforms using crowdfunding measures to fund terror activities.
• As per the DG NIA, the misuse of social media platforms was an issue that needed to be discussed at the third “No Money for Terror Conference” (NMFT) which India would be hosting from November 18-19.

News Summary

• DG NIA, while sharing the details of the NMFT Conference that is to be attended by representatives of 78 countries that the use of crowdfunding platforms to finance terrorist activities and weak control mechanisms of social media platforms were one of the four main agendas to be discussed at the conference.
• The aim of NMFT Conference is to build an integrated approach to countering terrorism.

What is “No Money for Terror Conference” (NMFT)?

• The NMFT conference was started in 2018 as an initiative of the French government which itself had laid the foundation of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) in 1989.
• Around 70 delegations from different nations and the heads of nearly 20 agencies attended the Conference in France.
• By creating frameworks to address the risks associated with the use of cash, informal remittance systems (including hawalas), prepaid cards, anonymous means of payments, and by promoting digital transactions, the conference decided to "fully criminalize terrorism financing... even in the absence of a link to a specific terrorist act" and "enhance the traceability and transparency of financial flows."

3rd “No Money For Terror Conference” (NMFT) 2022

• India is hosting the 3rd edition of No Money For Terror Conference from from November 18-19.
• The Union Ministry of Home Affairs is in charge of organizing it.
• It intends to advance the conversations the world community had about preventing the financing of terrorism at the two previous conferences, which were held in Paris (2018) and Melbourne (2019).
• Additionally, explanations of the technological, legal, regulatory, and cooperative implications of all facets of terrorism financing are intended to be included.
• Additionally, it aims to set the tone for other important political and official discussions centered on preventing the financing of terrorism.
• Representatives from 75 nations and international organizations will participate in the Conference, which will take place over two days.

Agenda of Conference

• The use of crowdfunding websites and virtual assets by terrorist organizations, as well as their use of the dark web, the connections between financing for terrorism and normal economic activity, and payment intermediaries are all on the agenda for the NMFT 2022.
• It is essentially an expansion of worries expressed recently in Delhi at the UN General Assembly's Counter Terrorism Committee Conference and the Interpol Conference.
• India will talk about how non-profit organizations, non-financial enterprises, and occupations are used to finance terrorism as well as how it is done through the Money Transfer Service Scheme and hawala networks.
• India will also pay attention to "the difficulties faced by law enforcement agencies in pursuing cases involving the financing of terrorism, the sharing of information among financial intelligence units, and emerging trends in reducing the risks associated with money laundering and terrorism financing."

Role of Social Media Plateform in Terror Funding

• The act of giving money or other forms of support to lone terrorists or other non-state actors is known as terrorism financing.
• Terrorists and terrorist organizations frequently exploit every financial source they can get their hands on to finance themselves.
• The ability of the internet to safeguard the anonymity it can offer to the donor and recipient makes it a growing source of modern terrorist financing.
• Social Media plateform are growing as medium to gather finance to terror activities by using platefrom for advertising, and other activities.
• Propaganda tool is also used by terrorist organizations to enlist financial support from their supporters.
• Social media is used to give effect to money laundering, the cash may potentially originate from an illicit source but appear to be legitimate.
• The majority of nations have put in place measures to Combat Terror Financing (CTF), frequently as part of their anti-money-laundering regulations.

Issues with Social Media on Internal Security:

• The spread of "Internet-enabled" terrorism, the incitement of hatred and tension, and the disruption of general peace are all achieved by state and non-state actors using the internet and social media, which have grown in popularity and accessibility.
• Youth radicalization: The NIA has intercepted information being spread on telegram to recruit for terrorist organizations like AQIS and LeT.
• Utilization of the Internet by Daesh: Daesh has been using the Internet to disseminate its propaganda through sites like Twitter, YouTube, and others.
• Communication and interaction: by "cyber-planners," who will be in charge of organizing terrorist attacks, selecting recruits, acting as "virtual coachers," and offering direction and inspiration all during the process.
• Promoting Lone wolf attack practices among youth: Lone wolf strategy will create disturbance in the society.
• Propagating agenda: Social media serves as a good medium to propagate the propaganda materials, video, documents, picture and stem the hatred among society.
• An increase in sentiments about sensitive topics: employing altered films, misleading claims of evidence of injustice, and other dubious ideologies to promote false propaganda on delicate and provoking subjects in India.

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MCQs

Question: Consider the following statements on the Financial Action Task Force.

1. The greylist countries are known as Non-Cooperative Territories (NCCTs).
2. The FATF updates the blacklist on a regular basis.

Which of the statement(s) given above is/are correct?

(a) 1 only

(b) 2 only

(c) Both 1 and 2

(d) Neither 1 nor 2