The Islamic State jihadists are actively using social media networks such as Facebook, Twitter and Whatsapp as their 'command and control networks of choice', Britain's electronic spying agency chief said.
According to the Mirror, GCHQ chief Robert Hannigan said internet firms were 'in denial' over the role their networks played in terrorism and said they should open themselves up more to intelligence services.
Hannigan said that without the support from the private sector, particularly the largest US technology companies dominating the web, it was difficult for GCHQ and its sister agencies-MI5 and the Secret Intelligence Service, to tackle these challenges.
He said that the social network sites had become the command-and-control networks of choice for terrorists and criminals, adding that the tech companies would have to come up with better arrangements for facilitating lawful investigation by security and law enforcement agencies if they were to meet this challenge, the report added.
