Outsmarting
digital opponents
Using public safety technology to confront
online threats to national security
Outsmarting digital opponents
Digital technologies have changed everything.
Governments, businesses and citizens now treat
high speed, secure access to the Internet, 24x7
online services, and near-instant global sharing of
information as the norm. This enthusiastic embrace
of digital technologies is not only powerfully
represented in the 289 million Twitter users1 and
nearly one-and-a-half billion Facebook accounts,2
but also offers a new route to exploitation by threat
groups. From extremism, to foreign state espionage,
cyber threats, or proliferation activities, the use of
online means to recruit and task vulnerable citizens
is adding an unwelcome burden on the highpressure workload of national security agencies.
Faced with the virtually limitless scope and scale
of digital technologies, it is more vital than ever
to stay one step ahead of security threats.
Traditionally, national security agencies knew what
data they needed and generally where to find it.
But today, gaining real-time insights from a large,
fragmented and ever-changing pool of data is like
looking for a needle in a haystack—one that is
expanding at an ever-increasing pace. Current
approaches to the collection, analysis, development
and use of intelligence from open-source
information (including social media, websites,
blogs, online news, web fora, and similar) are
already outdated. Using emerging digital
technologies to process and present this
information effectively offers national security
agencies a more effective route to preventing
threats and outsmarting violent extremists.
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Tackling threats
Today, national security agencies’ operational
advantages are at risk from rapid advances in
technology and the maturity of opponents’
technical security tradecraft. For example,
violent extremists have operational security
(OPSEC) manuals3 and even a 24-hour help desk
to help their foot soldiers to recruit and conduct
terrorist acts worldwide. Education is readily
available on how to secure and hide their
communications through the use of encryption
and digital tradecraft.4 In a climate of shrinking
resources, reacting to these complex, ever-changing
threats has many national security agencies
finding it difficult to juggle their overarching
technology strategy with the constant demand
to react to short-term, tactical challenges.
Rapid changes in threat levels and the increasing
sophistication of opponents’ digital activities are
compounded by the big data that national
security agencies need to interpret, which is
affecting operational agility. Following the San
Bernardino attacks that left 14 people dead, it
was reported that United States security officials
had failed to detect social media posts
sympathetic to violent jihad on one of the
killer’s accounts during the immigration
screening processes.5 Without the time or
resources for deep and accurate analysis of every
case which arises, the ability to use advanced
analytics to integrate covertly-acquired
intelligence with open-source information
is a highly attractive proposition for national
security agencies.
http://www.statisticbrain.com/twitter-statistics/
http://www.statisticbrain.com/facebook-statistics/
http://www.wired.com/2015/11/isis-opsec-encryption-manuals-reveal-terrorist-group-security-protocols/
http://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/paris-terror-attacks/isis-has-help-desk-terrorists-staffed-around-clock-n464391
San Bernardino attacks: Killer’s social media ‘not checked’ December 2015 http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-35094415
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Outsmarting digital opponents
Governments are aware of the increasing
difficulty in combating digital threats and
recognize a more complete all-source picture is
required. In February 2016, the United Kingdom
Home Secretary, Theresa May, called on the
“Five Eyes” alliance to increase intelligence
sharing to “remove terrorist propaganda online”
and purge extremist messaging from the Internet.6
The Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI) has
echoed this and recommended the harnessing
of communication, marketing and social media
experts to fight new propaganda challenges.7
A number of governments are already moving
in this direction. For example, the Australian
government is investing AUD $21 million to build a
stronger social media counter-narrative capability.8
Using a much wider range of data is not the only
way that digital transformation can support
national security agencies. Governments can
enhance their expertise in tackling traditional
threats through smart investment in digital
technologies. An example of blending traditional
surveillance and digital solutions is Singapore’s
Safe City Testbed. This nationwide solution uses
the latest video analytics technologies to
identify street incidents and threats, and alert
the appropriate national security or public safety
agency. The approach enables rapid response
to either prevent future incidents or more
effectively respond to those already in motion.9
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Two transformative steps
Two steps can help national security agencies
better manage security threats:
Step 1. Use digital technologies to enhance
information sharing and collaboration
Public safety technology can supplement
existing approaches to information sharing
and collaboration to accelerate and enhance
intelligence. Advanced digital and collaborative
tools enable national security agencies to
pre-empt threats, target violent extremists, and
counter-extremist narratives online. Following
the shooting by 15-year-old Farhad Jabar of
a New South Wales police force employee in
October 2015, the local police union in Australia
called upon the government to implement a
more sophisticated law enforcement database
and encourage better intelligence sharing.10
The ability to collect, analyze and develop
actionable intelligence from data shared
between multiple agencies significantly
increases capabilities without the need for
additional resources. Using digital tools to share
such data can elicit a response more effortlessly,
securely and effectively than by sending and
receiving unstructured text requests. Matching
data models, ontologies and taxonomies, as well
as the auto-processing of data and use of joint
analytical tools can greatly increase the speed
and scope of information sharing. Taking
advantage of secure, private cloud solutions
enables national security agencies to benefit
from a larger, consolidated pool of data
(as appropriate under law) to identify threats
or avenues of inquiry.
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2016/02/17/five_eyes_must_purge_terrorists_from_web_theresa_may/
https://www.aspi.org.au/publications/gen-y-jihadists-preventing-radicalisation-in-australia/GenY_jihadists.pdf
https://www.attorneygeneral.gov.au/Mediareleases/Pages/2015/FirstQuarter/20-February-2015-Combating-terrorist-propaganda-online.aspx
https://www.accenture.com/us-en/success-singapore-government-safe-city-test-bed
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-10-03/nsw-police-headquarters-gunman-named/6825466
Outsmarting digital opponents
Agencies and governments know that such
solutions need to be implemented at the national
level so they can also be realized, in time,
on an international scale. With rapid digital
advancements, national security agencies should
continuously scan their environment and educate
themselves on what new capabilities are available
to keep pace with the latest developments.
“There must be international
cooperation, a common approach, free
flows of intelligence and information,
and the closing of technological gaps
which the extremists exploit.”11
United Kingdom Home Secretary
Theresa May, 16 February 2016
Step 2. Seize digital transformation opportunities
There is no single solution to combat existing
and emerging threats, but by using the same
emerging technologies that opponents are using,
national security agencies can enhance
operational effectiveness. Islamic State are
currently using social media to reach out
virtually to promote and recruit nationally and
internationally12 and collaborate with potential
future members. With 46 percent of social
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media users actively discussing news items
online, it is easy to see why digital makes an
attractive radicalization platform.13 But this vast
data pool can be exploited by national security
agencies, too. Historically, no-one questioned
the effective analysis of call data records; today,
social media and other digital and online sources
of information are being assessed as ways to
affect predictive policing or intelligence
activities in the future.
Applying public safety technologies that make
use of a wide range of content analytics
(including sentiment analysis, word analysis,
opinion mining and natural language processing)
to open-source information can help prevent
and detect threats.14 Such technologies now
work effectively and instantly across diverse
language datasets. London’s Metropolitan Police
Service piloted predictive analytics technology
on data from various sources to better
understand gang activities across the city.
The insights derived highlighted and risk-scored
known serial offenders, enabling the police
to enhance decision-making.15 The digital
transformation of traditional collection sources
such as surveillance, interception, video, and
pattern-of-life data means that it can then be
enriched and analyzed with open-source
information to draw a much more complete
picture for national security agencies. The
adversaries may be getting smarter, but using
digital technologies, agencies can beat them
at their own game.
https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/home-secretary-international-action-needed-to-tackle-terrorism
‘The Twitter jihad: ISIS insurgents in Iraq, Syria using social media to recruit fighters, promote violence’, ABC News, 21 June 2014
Accenture Research & International Association of Chiefs of Police, Making Social Media Part of the Uniform: How Policing Solutions
use #Socialmedia to #Buildcommunities and #Fightcrime, 2014; p 6.
Accenture Research & International Association of Chiefs of Police: Making Social Media Part of the Uniform
https://newsroom.accenture.com/industries/health-public-service/london-metropolitan-police-service-and-accenture-completeanalytics-pilot-program-to-fight-gang-crime.htm
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Outsmarting digital opponents
Ask yourself
• With only a laptop, Internet connection and open-source technology, a bomb-maker can
instantly, securely and anonymously send bomb-making techniques and methodologies
to a potential bomb-maker anywhere in the world. Can you share information with your
State, National or International partners as easily?
• If your data or analytical product is your commodity, does it serve its true value if in a silo?
• If you are unable to share your information with your State, National or International
partners, would you still want the ability to analyze theirs to achieve your operational
outcomes?
A proactive advantage
National security agencies operate in a digital
world where vast amounts of relevant
information reside in the public domain. As
new generations of businesses and citizens are
“persistently connected,” being able to evaluate
this information for intelligence purposes
becomes more critical. It is not a case of
whether to use any or all of a range of public
safety technologies—such as biometrics, video
analytics or offender management systems—but
rather how to employ them in the right way to
manage the growing diversity of both threats
and data. Going forward, national security
agencies need to:
•
T ake advantage of existing data: Use digital
technologies and analytics proactively to mine
legacy data and use new data (such as social
media and open-source intelligence) to gain
new intelligence and drive decision making.
•
ork ever more collaboratively: Alleviate
W
resource constraints and manage security
restrictions with technology to focus on the
core business.
•
edefine digital value: Use digital technologies
R
to enhance capabilities and situational
awareness while reducing resource liabilities.
Contact
Dirk Hodgson
[email protected]
Joshua Kennedy-White
[email protected]
Kevin O’Brien
[email protected]
Connect with us to learn more on delivering public service for the future on Twitter
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