NIA seeks assistance of social networking giants to track IS activities

New Delhi, February 9

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has sought assistance from social networking giants like Facebook, Twitter and WhatsApp, to track Islamic State’s propaganda activities.

NIA told a court on Tuesday that they have sent requests to various social media sites such as WhatsApp, Facebook, Twitter, Telegram, KIK and Surespot, to obtain the datas under Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty (MLAT).

The agency had brought three people with suspected links to the group — Sheikh Azhar Ul Islam, Mohammed Farhan Shaikh and Adnan Hassan — before the court. The three had been deported from UAE and arrested when the landed.

NIA claimed that the suspected and their associates were extensively social networking sites for recruiting of members for the militant group.

"During investigation it has surfaced that accused persons in pursuance of larger criminal conspiracy and in connivance with other associates have extensively used Internet and many other Internet based services and various social media sites/forums including, but not limited to WhatsApp, Facebook, Twitter, Telegram, KIK, Surespot etc to identify and facilitate recruitment of members and promote the activities and ideology of banned terrorist organisation namely Islamic State," it said.

"The data and contents of the same are required to be obtained. The request for obtaining this data is being forwarded to internet service providers (ISPs) under Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty (MLAT) for criminal matters," the NIA said in its remand application moved before the court during an in-camera proceeding.

The agency said that they have seized electronic gadgets they found with the suspects. Gadgets have been sent for forensic examination.

The three have been remanded in NIA’s custody for then days. — PTI