Watch Out For Lone Wolf Terrorist Movement From Social Media

JAKARTA - The National Police and related parties are asked to be alerted to terrorist actors acting alone or lone wolf. Moreover, radicalism and all activities related to terrorism can be seen through a number of social media applications such as Telegram and Facebook.

Forensic psychology expert, Reza Indragiri Amriel, reminded the authorities of the potential for the development of a lone wolf, triggered by an attack at the National Police Headquarters some time ago.

"The relevance is the possibility of new lone wolf appearing massively because they don't need a network, don't need to meet anyone, then become new terrorists," Reza said in a virtual discussion, Sunday, April 4.

In addition, lone wolves or terrorists who are not affiliated with certain groups can emerge because the current state of terror is different from the past. In the past, continued Reza, people would become terrorists if someone brainwashed them. Usually, they are active and covertly.

However, this has changed since social media developed and all the information is in it. Every time, he said, people have the potential to become independent learners, including learning from terrorists virtually.

"For example, there are people who take advantage of the information on social media and radicalize the contents of their own heads," said Reza.

"Once the contents of their heads have been radicalized, the would-be perpetrator performs an impeachment on himself. He takes an oath to perform an operation which he believes to be the truth," he continued.

Reza said, in the world of psychology there is a term anxiety disorder caused by social media. This term describes how powerful the influence of technological devices is. Ideological doctrine such as terrorists can be started from receiving the information containing the issue of radicalism.

"Networks do not have to know each other, but there is a value transmission process, massive information distribution takes place via virtual media," he said.

Most used social media

Meanwhile, in a different event, a former terrorist convict, Haris Amir Falah, said that the current era of digitalization is also being used by terrorist groups to recruit members. He conveyed that the social media that are often used by terrorist groups to recruit members are Facebook and Telegram.

"There are several social media tools that they use massively, for example on Telegram or also on other social media on Facebook, I think it is also used. So without meeting someone, someone can become a bride," said Haris in an online discussion broadcast on YouTube on Saturday, April 3.

Through this social media, the terrorist group then began to communicate with prospective members and provide guidance. Haris also said that the current allegiance system does not need to meet face to face but only through social media.

"They can be in the room alone and then take allegiance, then they are already tied to the program," he said.

It is not enough there, through social media the coaches will carry out a doctrine to prospective members. Subsequently, there were terrorists who sacrificed their lives in the name of religion. "That's what is unfortunate. People are made to die, but they (the coaches) only dare to live," he said.

During this week there have been two acts of terror that occurred within the near time. The first terror was the bombing in front of the Makassar Cathedral Church which occurred on Sunday, March 28 when Catholics were celebrating Palm Sunday.

The Makassar bombing terror was known to have been carried out by a married couple affiliated with the Jamaah Ansharut Daulah (JAD) group.

Meanwhile, the second action took place at the National Police Headquarters on Wednesday, 31 March. The perpetrator of the attack at the National Police Headquarters was a woman with the initials US and was 25 years old. She moves alone or lone wolf and is affiliated with ISIS.