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Lauren Juarez
Professor McGriff
Composition II
1 August 2016

The Dark Side of the Internet

When the internet first started becoming accessible to the public, a new form of
harassment was born. At the time, cyberbullying had become the new age of bullying, where
students can now take to the internet and bully their victims. There is no clear cut definition for
cyberbullying. Cyberbullying can be described as the harassment, intimidation and harm of
another individual through online resources, while others claim it is the social terror through
technology. Whatever the true definition may be, cyberbullying has proven itself to have
boundaries, with anyone potentially falling victim to the increasing trend. Part of the reason it
has no boundaries is because this new form of terror can be done through emails, chatrooms,
blogs and social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter. It has no walls to break through,
and no physical location to establish. However, as technology continued to evolve, cyberbullies
evolved with it. From cyberbullying now stems new forms of terror, like cyber-harassment,
cyber-stalking and now the most infamous, cyber-terrorism. Like cyberbullying, cyber-terrorism
attacks from the internet with no boundaries to stop it. For this reason, laws must also evolve
with the internet and the growing threat of cyber-terrorism. Although many proponents of
freedom of speech believe that the internet should be left alone, the internet should be regulated
because it has evolved into a safe haven for terrorists due to its anonymity, it has become an open

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range for terrorists to recruit members from across the world and it has turned into a weapon
with no boundaries.
Charles Levendosky, editor of the Casper (Wyoming) Star-Tribune, makes an argument
against internet regulation in his article titled, Federal Regulation of Internet Pornography Is
Unconstitutional with regards to the First Amendment right to freedom of Speech. Levendosky
argues that speech that is appropriate for adults, like a discussion of rapes in prison or genital
mutilation, may not be appropriate for young childrennevertheless, the Internet cannot be
limited to what is only appropriate for them. In other words, Charles Levendosky argues that as
horrifying as it may be, even discussing the pleasures of rape and torture amongst one another is
still considered freedom of speech and is protected under the First Amendment of the
Constitution. According to his statement, the government cannot regulate the internet as a way to
limit free speech or to place a censorship on inappropriate language. The freedom of speech
spans out to all ages, including minors, and anything that purges their right is unconstitutional.
Although Charles Levendosky makes a valid argument against internet regulation, he
fails to discuss the entire vastness of the internet. He merely discusses the World Wide Web,
which accounts for only 4% of the entire internet. Zack Epstein, current Executive Editor at BGR
technology news outlet further explains in his article How to find the Invisible Internet about
how the internet is broken up. He states, In fact, the World Wide Web as we know it represents
just 4% of networked web pages the remaining 96% of pages make up what many refer to as
the Invisible Internet, Invisible Web or Deep Web. This massive subsection of the Internet is
500 times bigger than the visible Web and is not indexed by search engines like Google.
In other words, the Deep Web is not accessible through the World Wide Web like Google,
Yahoo! or other popular search engines. The other 96% of the internet, that which is inaccessible

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through popular search engines, is what is considered the deep web. The reason the deep web
plays such a crucial role in cyberterrorism is because, although it is accessible through certain
web browsers like the Tor web browser, the deep web is home to most of the illegal activity that
takes place over the internet like buying and selling drugs, child pornography, weapons trading,
hit men for hire and sex trafficking. The reason such brutality and illegal activity occurs on the
dark side of the internet is because the deep web offers complete anonymity, which is also the
reason why it is extremely dangerous.
Natasha Bertrand, a journalist for the Business Insider explains in her article ISIS is
taking full advantage of the darkest corners of the internet about how the internet anonymity
works in the deep web. She explains that just as an onion has multiple layers, onion rooting on
Tor [browser] protects people's identities by wrapping layers around their communications that
are impenetrable and thereby untraceable. In other words, it jumbles up the IP address. Every
computer has a specific IP address, traceable to the exact location should the need arise for
someone to find the identity of an individual who sent an incriminating message, or a threatening
email. For example, when using a computer from home in the United States to browse the web,
the IP address attached to the computer carries information that will inform the websites of the
location. This allows websites like Amazon and Facebook to better customize ones internet
browsing experience by advertising specifically to the needs and browsing habits of an
individual. Although tracking IP addresses from an individual who enters a website is used for
marketing and advertisement purposes, many seek internet privacy when browsing, and prefer to
keep their identity as private as possible when visiting certain websites. Although the need for
internet confidentiality is understandable and a legal right, this also allows criminals to roam free
in the internet without consequences due its anonymity and discreteness. Due to this anonymity,

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it is no surprise that the infamous terrorist group, ISIS, would get a hold of the technology and
use it for its malicious and personal gain.
Although many criminals take to the deep web for illegal activities, ISIS has taken the
internet by the horns, poisoning it with their propaganda and malicious video content. And with
free range of the internet, everyone has full access to the deep web to view the videos ISIS
continuously posts on the internet with complete discretion. Because the deep web is anonymous
by scrambling up the IP address, ISIS can post videos online without having their location traced.
In 2015, The Georgian Journal, an online news source reported one such video posted by
ISIS on the internet. Most notably, one execution shows five men are locked into a cage which
is slowly lowered by crane into a swimming pool, with underwater cameras prepared in order to
show the men frantically thrash about until they lose consciousness. The cage is then shown
being raised, with the five men dead in a heap at the bottom, foam flowing out of their mouths.
The video was posted on the internet by ISIS on July 23, 2015 showing five men locked in a
cage together and being slowly lowered into a body of water. The fear and utter grief of the five
men screams through the camera as they await their fate. When the cage is finally lowered into
the water, the camera pans to the men underwater, as they shake fiercely until one by one, they
all float still. This video was posted on the deep web by ISIS as a form of propaganda and also as
a way to spread fear throughout the world. Although this sort of video is not the first of its kind
and certainly not the lastit gives a clear message on the lengths ISIS will go to assure their
message echoes throughout the world. A simple poster will only be read by those how can
understand the language, but through a video, everyone can clearly see the message. In other
words, without having to learn any other language, ISIS has found a way to get their message

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across in a much more efficient way, and that is through uploading videos online for the world to
witness in fear.
The deep web is popular among criminals because of its complete discretion, however,
not many are aware of its existence. For this reason, ISIS has taken a bold move of showing its
presence on the World Wide Web like Facebook. Companies like Facebook and Twitter have
begun monitoring their own content for such terrorist presence and terminating such accounts.
According to Jessica Stern, a lecturer on Terrorism from Harvard University, Facebook took an
aggressive stance against violent jihadists starting in 2009, actively monitoring, seeking out, and
terminating pages and groups devoted to terrorist content (78). Although companies like
Facebook have begun to regulate their website for terrorist activities, this form of mild regulation
is not enough to create a dent in the terrorists activities. Part of this is because many of those
suspended users simply sat down at their computers the very next day, created new accounts, and
started all over again (Stern, 79). To further clarify her words, Jessica Stern suggests that
deleting a potential ISIS account is simply not enough because once the accounts have been
deleted, a new one can just as easily be created. Like a dog chasing its own tail, no progress will
be made unless a different route is taken.
Besides Facebook and Twitter, the FBI has also been fully aware of ISISs presence on
the surface and the deep web and they too have been trying to fight back. However, because
debates continue as to whether the internet should be regulated, web monitoring programs will
continue to face significant resistance from internet freedom advocatesMeanwhile, ISIS is
taking full advantage of the shadowiest parts of the web (Bertrand, 2015). In other words, while
supporters of internet freedom continue to bicker about their freedom of speech, ISIS continues
to rise in power and number without ever leaving their post in Syria. Jared Cohen, Senior

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Associate at the Council on Foreign Relations, best describes ISIS as being the first terrorist
group to hold both physical and digital territory (Foreign Affairs). Just as ISIS has taken their
battle to cyberspace, so too should the government regulate not only the military and the borders,
but also the cyberspace that ISIS continues to infiltrate. ISIS has clearly made the internet their
safe haven and government regulation is key to the fight against terror.
Along with anonymously roaming the internet, ISIS has also used the internet as an open
range to recruit members from around the world, ultimately growing their military power at an
alarming rate. According to Michael Morell, previous deputy executive and former acting
director of the Central Intelligence Agency, ISIS has gained affiliates faster than Al-Qaeda ever
did. From nothing a year ago, there are now militant groups in nearly 20 countries that have
sworn allegiance to ISIS (60). It is evident that ISIS has acquired the technological capability of
recruiting members while still remaining at their post in Raqqa, Syria. Having foreign fighters
with sworn allegiance to ISIS means ISIS has broken the boundaries between countries in order
to spread their malicious evil. This method of recruitment is cheaper much more efficient. ISIS
no longer has to forfeit passports and send out their militants across borders to get to a target.
With the internet, they can keep a strong hold in Syria while simultaneously attack other
countries from the inside out.
With the rise in technology, foreign fighters have become the keystone to ISISs success
in striking fear around the world. According to The International Center for the Study of
Radicalization and Political Violence (ICSR), foreigners who have taken up arms with the
Islamic State of Iraq and Syria continues to rise as it surpasses 20,000. Nearly 4,000 come from
western European countries alone, which is doubled from the 2013. In 2015, it was estimated
that 100 foreign fighters came from the United States. According to ICSR, the estimated foreign

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fighters for 2015 was 20,730. In order to build their military might, ISIS first starts off by
contacting the vulnerable who can be easily swayed.
Pamela Engel, a senior reporter of the political section for the Business Insider magazine
wrote an astonishingly detailed account on the psychological strategies ISIS uses to recruit
foreign fighters. In the article titled, Heres the manual that Al Qaeda and now ISIS use to
brainwash people online from the Business Insider magazine, she states that ISIS looks to
manipulate those who are vulnerable and searching for meaning in their lives. Those who don't
know much about Islam can be easier to indoctrinate and less likely to push back on what they're
told (Business Insider). Once a perfect candidate is found, she claims that the next step in the
ISIS recruitment manual is to establish a close and warm friendship. Like a typical predator, they
want to make their victim feel comfortable and safe. The manual advises: Help to fulfill his
needs. Be good with him even if he does something to harm/offend you, because everybody likes
the person who does something good for them. Listen to him to get to know more about his
personality (Business Insider).
The United States and several Western European countries have seen a rise in young
adults joining ISIS to become foreign fighters. As Pamela Engel revealed, ISIS has turned to
social media to lure teenagers to join in their ranks through a series of textbook protocols. ISIS is
very open with speaking to westerners online and they try to search for ideal candidates who are
non-religious. As Engel further explained in her article, ISIS seeks to educated those who are not
familiar with Islam because it is much easier to groom and manipulate the vulnerable than the
young adults who are already religious. Once they find potential recruits, they begin their next
stage of manipulation by bombarding them with propaganda in a gentle way so as to seem
friendly.

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Anna Erelle, a journalist investigating how ISIS infiltrates social media found out first
hand when she was contacted by a high ranking member of the terrorist group. Anna recounts her
story of how she and the ISIS member began to carry out daily conversation, he spoke to her
with a soothing and comforting tone, insuring that life in Syria is not like what western media
portrays. He began to relentlessly pursue her and eventually declared his love for her. He used
manipulation and cunning words to try to convince Anna that she must travel to Syria because he
was the only man that could truly take care of her. Quickly, his words turned cruel as he began to
use intimidation and fear until he ultimately released death threats to her (Erelle, 135). As
Pamela Engel suggested in her article, ISIS members do not begin conversations with cruel and
harsh words, nor do they reveal their true intend within the first few talks. True to the manual
that Engel exposed, Annas perpetrator tried to entice her into thinking Syria was the paradise she
had always dreamed of. He assured her she will be well fed, well protected and no one will harm
her. Annas detailed account on the events, along with Pamela Engels exposure of the ISIS
recruitment manual, is vital to understanding how ISIS has become so successful in luring so
many westerners into committing horrible atrocities.
In order to get an idea how effective ISIS has been in converting the internet into a
weapon with no boundaries, one mustnt look further than the United States of America. Raqqa,
Syria is over five thousand miles from Jacksonville, Florida, yet ISIS still managed to attack on
American soil without ever crossing a border. This was clearly evident on 12 June 2016, when a
young man walked into an unsuspecting Orlando nightclub and mercilessly took the lives of 49.
Ms. Patience Carter, a survivor of that fateful night relieved her story to WFTV news by stating
she had just arrived in Florida for the first time when she went out to Pulse for a night of fun.
Angel Colon, another survivor recounted his experience to WFTV news about the terrified club-

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goers [that] trampled over him as they tried to escape, and lying wounded on the floor, he could
see that Mateen was shooting already lifeless bodies, just to make sure they were dead. Miguel
Leiva, another survivor also retells his story to WFTV news: Where I was at, there was 30 of us
and only five of us walked out. Everybody is dead people were kneeling, praying and he killed
them.
According to the article, Orlando Shooter Fits FBIs Homegrown-Terror Worry written
by Devlin Barrett and Dan Frosch on The Wall Street Journal, the gunman who was responsible
for the massacre had previously shown coworkers websites and links to several extremist
websites prior to the attack. The attack was exactly what the FBI had been worried about,
claiming that US self-radicalization is difficult to detect. The FBI is now going through the
gunmans life to see if theres anything theyve missed from their previous investigations on
those theyve found to have expressed interest in radicalism. The FBI also believe the shooter
used mainstream websites like Facebook and YouTube to learn about the terrorist groups. The
FBI is now fully aware that ISIS has been attracting US citizens through mainstream websites.
Unfortunately, all of this new found information about ISIS and the internet comes too late for
the 49 victims of the Orlando nightclub shooting (A5).
Despite the terror ISIS has struck across the globe, many still argue against internet
regulation. Brent Skorup and Christopher Koopman, authors of the article The FCC's
transaction reviews and First Amendment risks discuss issues with the freedom of speech and
internet censorship by stating that freedom of speech is violated not only by censorship but also
by governmental attempts to compel speech. However, the Orlando nightclub shooting is a
strong example of how why freedom of speech should not be the main bullet point for arguing
against internet regulation. Internet regulation stems far from just being able to freely speak

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ones mind. Terrorist groups have taken full advantage of this open and unregulated internet to
not only terrorize, but to rob innocent people of their freedom to live. From the survivors of the
Orlando nightclub shooting, it is clearly evident that ISIS should never be taken lightly. They
have no mercy and they will continue to show no mercy. Their job is to terrorize, and theyve
perfected this new form of cyber terror by ruthlessly attacking the internet. Michael Morell
knows first-hand about the real dangers of homegrown terrorist attacks. In an article written by
him in Time magazine, he addresses the vicious reality of the situation. Morell states that despite
all our previous efforts to fight the terrorist organization, it is crystal clear that our ISIS strategy
is not working (11). In other words, something must drastically change. ISIS has proven
themselves to be far from the generic terrorist group that makes idol threats. ISIS has
revolutionized the meaning of war, the sense of fear and the boundaries of the internet. Although
many proponents of freedom of speech believe that internet should be left alone, internet must be
regulated because the freedom to live a life without terror depends on it.

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Work Cited
Barrett, Devlin, and Dan Frosch. Orlando Shooter Fits FBIs Homegrown-Terror Worry. The
Wall Street Journal 14 June 2016: A7. Print.
Bertrand, Natasha. ISIS is taking full advantage of the darkest corners of the internet. Business
Insider. Business Insider, 11 July. 2015. Web. 6 Jul. 2015.
Cohen, Jared. How to Marginalize the Islamic State Online. Foreign Affairs. Council on
Foreign Relations., Dec. 2015. Web. 17 Jul. 2016.
Engel, Pamela. Heres the manual that Al Qaeda and now ISIS use to brainwash people
online. Business Insider. Business Insider Inc. 2 Jul. 2015. Web. 18 Jul 2016.
Epstein, Zach. How to find the Invisible Internet. BGR. BGR Media, 20 Jan. 2014. Web. 18
Jul. 2016.
Erelle, Anna. In the Skin of a Jihadist: A young journalist enters the ISIS recruitment network.
New York: Harper College Publishers, 2015. Print.
Levendosky, Charles. "Federal Regulation of Internet Pornography Is Unconstitutional."
Censorship. Ed. Tamara L. Roleff. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, 2002. Opposing
Viewpoints. Rpt. from "New Internet Censorship Law Will Fail." Casper Star-Tribune 17
Jan. 1999. Opposing Viewpoints in Context. Web. 25 July 2016.
Morell, Michael. ISIS will strike America. Time 30 Nov. 2015: 60-61. Print.
Neumann, Peter. Foreign fighter total in Syria/Iraq now exceeds 20,000; surpasses
Afghanistan conflict in the 1980s. The International Center for the Study of

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Radicalization and Political Violence. ICSR, 26 Jan. 2015. Web. 17 Jul. 2016.
Skorup, Brent, and Christopher Koopman. "The FCC's transaction reviews and First Amendment
risks." Harvard Journal of Law & Public Policy Summer 2016: 675+. Academic OneFile.
Web. 3 Aug. 2016.
Stern, Jessica, and J.M. Berger. ISIS: The State of Terror. New York, Harper College Publisher,
2015. Print.