Anonymous targets ISIS-affiliated social media accounts
Nearly 800 Twitter accounts, 12 Facebook pages and more than 50 e-mail addresses have been disabled, according to the group
Hundreds of social media accounts reportedly linked to the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) have been shut down - not by intelligence agencies, but by hackers, they claim.
In a video released Friday on YouTube, Hacktivist group Anonymous claimed responsibility for the attacks against Twitter and Facebook pages affiliated with the terrorist group.
Nearly 800 Twitter accounts, 12 Facebook pages, and more than 50 e-mail addresses have been disabled, according to the group. The group listed the full URLs of Facebook pages and Twitter handles of alleged ISIS supporters, and even recruiters, according to a post on Pastebin, a website used by hackers to boast about their hacks.
"We are Muslims, Christians, Jews, we are hackers, crackers, hacktivists, phishers, agents, spies, or just the guy from next door," says the voice in the video.
"We come from all races, countries, religions and ethnicity - united as one, divided by zero.
"Remember, the terrorists that are calling themselves Islamic State, ISIS, are not Muslims," the narrator continues.
ISIS, which currently holds a third of Iraq and a third of Syria, has been known for recruiting volunteer fighters via social media networks.
But Anonymous emphasized that it is aiming to disable ISIS’ online presence.
“We will hunt you, Take down your sites, accounts, emails, and expose you... From now on, no safe place for you online... You will be treated like a virus, And we are the cure.”
The narration ends: “ISIS we are Anonymous, we are a legion, we do not forgive, we do not forget, expect us.”
The attacks come as a continuation to what the group calls “Operation ISIS.” Anonymous “declared war” on extremist-affiliated websites last month, shortly after the Charlie Hebdo attacks in Paris.
