ISIS uses social media to compile a kill list of US military personnel

ISIS uses social media to compile a kill list of US military personnel

100 service men and women have been targeted by ISIS

The Islamic State has released a list of targets to be stabbed or beheaded. The names, addresses, and photos of 100 United Stats military personnel make up the list.

“We have decided to leak 100 addresses so that our brothers residing in America can deal with you,” said the ISIS document that was published online. “Kill them in their own lands, behead them in their own homes, stab them to death as they walk their streets thinking that they are safe.”

Calling themselves the ‘Islamic State Hacking Division’, the terrorists claim to have stolen the information from military servers and databases they hacked into. However, this claim is unsubstantiated. Presently, the Defense Department is unable to authenticate the names and address.

“We are looking into it,” said a spokesman of the Department of Defense. “The safety of our service members is always a concern.”

ISIS says that the men and women mentioned on the list are Air force, Navy, and Army personnel who have contributed to the attacks in Iraq, Syria, and Yemen. It is for this reason that they have been targeted

However, an informal inquiry has shown this not to be true. Several names were of B-52 crewmembers stationed in North Dakota and Louisiana. B-52 bombers have not been used in the anti-ISIS campaign. Many pictures are blurred and one appears to be a press photo of an official meeting with President Obama.

Nonetheless, a fair amount of the information is accurate. But it was not obtained through a security breach. Rather, the names, photos, and addresses came from news articles, public records, residential address search engines, and most of all, from social media.

“It is recommended Marines and family members check their online/social footprint, ensuring privacy settings are adjusted to limit the amount of available personal information,” said Marine Corps spokesman Lt. Col. John Caldwell. “Vigilance and force protection considerations remain a priority for commanders and their personnel worldwide.”

No matter how the information was obtained, it cannot be denied that ISIS has a keen knowledge of how to use the Internet to its advantage. US officials have grudgingly admitted that the hit list was well formatted.

A web posting by an ISIS member reads “We have made it easy for you by giving you addresses, all you need to do is take the final step, so what are you waiting for?”

Be social, please share!

Facebooktwittergoogle_plusredditpinterestlinkedintumblrmail

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *