Latest news with #JonathanHall
The Independent
5 days ago
- Politics
- The Independent
Terror laws watchdog warns of risk posed by extremists using AI
Terrorists will use artificial intelligence (AI) to promote their ideologies and plan atrocities, with 'chatbot radicalisation' a problem that needs to be countered, a watchdog has warned. Jonathan Hall KC said generative AI could be used for propaganda purposes, attack planning and spreading disinformation which may trigger acts of terrorist violence. Mr Hall, the independent reviewer of terrorism legislation, suggested new laws should be brought in to ban the creation or possession of computer programmes designed to stir up racial or religious hatred. Terrorist chatbots already exist 'presented as fun and satirical models' but given the right prompts they are willing to promote terrorism, he said in his annual report. Mr Hall said: 'The popularity of sex-chatbots is a warning that terrorist chatbots could provide a new radicalisation dynamic, with all the legal difficulties that follow in pinning liability on machines and their creators.' The watchdog highlighted the case of Jaswant Singh Chail, who climbed into the grounds of Windsor Castle in 2021 armed with a crossbow after conversing with a chatbot called Sarai about planning the attack. More widely, Mr Hall said 'generative artificial intelligence's ability to create text, images and sounds will be exploited by terrorists'. Groups such as al Qaida could avoid the technology because of their belief in 'authentic messages' from senior leaders but it could be 'boom time for extreme right wing forums, antisemites and conspiracy theorists who revel in creative nastiness'. Terrorist groups could use AI to generate propaganda images or translate text into multiple languages. The technology could be used to produce deepfakes to bring 'terrorist leaders or notorious killers back from the dead' to spread their message again. Generative AI could be used to provide technical advice on avoiding surveillance, or make knife-strikes more lethal – reducing the need for would-be terrorists to receive training from other people. But he said that current safeguards may deter attack planners from using AI models until offline versions were readily available. He noted it had also been argued that in certain circumstances AI could be used to extend the way attacks are carried out, by potentially helping to create biological or chemical weapons or generating code for cyber attacks. Warning about the spread of disinformation online, Mr Hall said the storming of the US Capitol on January 6 2021 emerged from a 'soup of online conspiracy and a history of anti-government militarism that had been supercharged by the internet'.
The Irish Sun
5 days ago
- Politics
- The Irish Sun
Terrorists could exploit AI chatbots to spread hate and hatch plots, terrorism tsar warns
WANNABE jihadists could soon be coached to carry out atrocities by killer chatbots, Britain's terrorism tsar has warned. Extremists may exploit artificial intelligence to plan attacks, spread propaganda, and dodge detection with the help of persuasive bots, according to Jonathan Hall KC. Advertisement 1 Mr Hall said AI tools could make terrorist content faster and more powerful Credit: PA In his official 2023 annual report on terrorism, he said: 'Chatbot radicalisation is the most difficult problem.' Mr Hall warned some terrorist-themed bots are already being shared online, saying:'Terrorist chatbots are available off the shelf, presented as fun and satirical models but as I found, willing to promote terrorism.' He said much depends on what users ask the AI, explaining: 'Chatbots pander to biases and are eager to please and an Osama Bin Laden will provide you a recipe for lemon sponge if you ask.' He added: 'Even where a chatbot has had its restraining features (guardrails) removed, or is positively trained to be sympathetic to terrorist narratives, the output overwhelmingly depends on whether the bot is asked about cake recipes or murder.' Advertisement He listed seven possible terrorism risks from generative AI, including attack planning, propaganda, evading online moderation, deepfake impersonation and identity guessing. Mr Hall said AI tools could make terrorist content faster and more powerful, arguing 'generative AI's ability to create text, images and sounds will be exploited by terrorists". He recommended the Government 'consider a new race-hatred based offence' to deal with potential cases that fall between terrorism and hate crime . But he warned against jumping to legislate too early: 'The absence of Gen AI-enabled attacks could suggest the whole issue is overblown.' Advertisement Most read in The Sun He said there was only one known case of a chatbot engaging in a conversation about planning an attack. Jaswant Singh Chail took a crossbow into the grounds of Windsor Castle, intending to kill Elizabeth II, in 2021. It came after communication with a chatbot which sanctioned his attempt and he was jailed for nine years. Mr Hall's report also warned that online radicalisation remains a live threat on existing platforms. Advertisement He highlighted the case of Mohammad Sohail Farooq, who attempted a bomb attack on St James's Hospital in Leeds in January 2023. The report stated this was 'a close-run thing' and that 'the facts suggest self-radicalisation via the internet (TikTok), personal grievances together with ideological and religious motives, a rapid escalation, and a near miss.' He argued that children and young people remain vulnerable to extremist content online. Mr Hall wrote that they are 'being seduced by online content into sharing material, expressing views, and forming intentions that can result in risk.' Advertisement
South Wales Guardian
07-07-2025
- Politics
- South Wales Guardian
Society ‘struggling' to respond to link between smartphones and youth extremism
In an interview as the 20th anniversary of the July 7 attacks is marked, Jonathan Hall KC said current methods used by extremists to influence potential recruits are 'a million miles' from the tactics used in the run up to 2005. Suicide bombers Mohammed Sidique Khan, 30, Shehzad Tanweer, 22, Hasib Hussain, 18, and Jermaine Lindsay, 19, set off bombs on three Tube trains and a bus, killing 52 people in the single worst terrorist atrocity on British soil. Ringleader and recruiter Khan appeared to be a pillar of the community, steering local youths away from crime and drugs by organising outdoor activities and helping to set up a gym in a mosque basement, but was in reality a fanatic. Mr Hall told the PA news agency the wide availability of smartphones has transformed radicalisation since then. 'The principal distinction from the era of 7/7 is the smartphone era,' Mr Hall said. 'That has changed the landscape. It has led to a different model of radicalisation. 'With 7/7 the indications were that Mohammad Sidique Khan was grooming people, there was a youth club, they went and did rafting together. 'Those sorts of outdoorsy, in person, group grooming activities, those feel a million miles away from the online world of radicalisation. 'I'm not aware of any sane person who seeks to argue the current wave of very young people becoming involved in terrorism, or extreme violence where it's not ideological, that that's not related to the internet and to the ready availability of smartphones. 'There's a very live debate about the ethics, the legality and the practicalities of which response is best. 'But we are absolutely grasping at straws and struggling, at the moment, as a society to work out what the correct response is. 'No one in their right minds would allow their children to allow a stranger into their bedroom, but that's what we've done with phones.' The attacks exposed the deadly threat from homegrown terrorists with 'appalling clarity', Mr Hall said. 'What 7/7 did, is it revealed with appalling clarity that our fellow citizens are willing to kill us. 'That very unsettling insight is as true today as it was back then, except you now have to bring in British citizens who have been inspired by extreme right-wing ideology to join the predominant Islamist threat. 'But that was the real kicker from 7/7. I think it really brought home this idea of the homegrown threat.' Commander Dominic Murphy said July 7 was 'a seminal moment' for counter-terrorism policing, leading to a series of changes that continued after the five terror attacks in the UK in 2017. He said that while Islamist groups are still the main threat to the UK, right wing terrorism is a growing problem, and there is concern that younger people are being drawn into extremism. In 2024, 39 of the 248 people arrested for terrorism offences were aged 17 and under, while children aged 11 to 15 made up the largest proportion of those referred to anti-extremism scheme Prevent (2,729 out of 6,884). 'Islamist remains our main threat. We do see a growing right-wing terrorist problem,' Mr Murphy said. 'We're increasingly seeing younger people involved in that right-wing threat as well, which is deeply concerning for us. 'But of course, we also see people that don't have a clear or fixed ideology. 'We can't say clearly that they're an Islamist terrorist, we can't say clearly that they ascribe to a right-wing ideology. 'Nonetheless, they're consuming large amounts of violent media online, and they might have a mixed or unclear ideology – that means, of course, we still need to be concerned about the threat to the public. 'It's diversified a lot even since 2017 and I think the online environment and the world environment adds a whole new layer of challenge to the threat that we face.'
Glasgow Times
07-07-2025
- Politics
- Glasgow Times
Society ‘struggling' to respond to link between smartphones and youth extremism
In an interview as the 20th anniversary of the July 7 attacks is marked, Jonathan Hall KC said current methods used by extremists to influence potential recruits are 'a million miles' from the tactics used in the run up to 2005. Suicide bombers Mohammed Sidique Khan, 30, Shehzad Tanweer, 22, Hasib Hussain, 18, and Jermaine Lindsay, 19, set off bombs on three Tube trains and a bus, killing 52 people in the single worst terrorist atrocity on British soil. Ringleader and recruiter Khan appeared to be a pillar of the community, steering local youths away from crime and drugs by organising outdoor activities and helping to set up a gym in a mosque basement, but was in reality a fanatic. The wreckage of the bus that was blown up in Tavistock Square (PA) Mr Hall told the PA news agency the wide availability of smartphones has transformed radicalisation since then. 'The principal distinction from the era of 7/7 is the smartphone era,' Mr Hall said. 'That has changed the landscape. It has led to a different model of radicalisation. 'With 7/7 the indications were that Mohammad Sidique Khan was grooming people, there was a youth club, they went and did rafting together. 'Those sorts of outdoorsy, in person, group grooming activities, those feel a million miles away from the online world of radicalisation. 'I'm not aware of any sane person who seeks to argue the current wave of very young people becoming involved in terrorism, or extreme violence where it's not ideological, that that's not related to the internet and to the ready availability of smartphones. 'There's a very live debate about the ethics, the legality and the practicalities of which response is best. 'But we are absolutely grasping at straws and struggling, at the moment, as a society to work out what the correct response is. 'No one in their right minds would allow their children to allow a stranger into their bedroom, but that's what we've done with phones.' The attacks exposed the deadly threat from homegrown terrorists with 'appalling clarity', Mr Hall said. 'What 7/7 did, is it revealed with appalling clarity that our fellow citizens are willing to kill us. 'That very unsettling insight is as true today as it was back then, except you now have to bring in British citizens who have been inspired by extreme right-wing ideology to join the predominant Islamist threat. 'But that was the real kicker from 7/7. I think it really brought home this idea of the homegrown threat.' A police officer with a leaflet at Kings Cross station, London appealing for information into the bombings (PA) Commander Dominic Murphy said July 7 was 'a seminal moment' for counter-terrorism policing, leading to a series of changes that continued after the five terror attacks in the UK in 2017. He said that while Islamist groups are still the main threat to the UK, right wing terrorism is a growing problem, and there is concern that younger people are being drawn into extremism. In 2024, 39 of the 248 people arrested for terrorism offences were aged 17 and under, while children aged 11 to 15 made up the largest proportion of those referred to anti-extremism scheme Prevent (2,729 out of 6,884). 'Islamist remains our main threat. We do see a growing right-wing terrorist problem,' Mr Murphy said. 'We're increasingly seeing younger people involved in that right-wing threat as well, which is deeply concerning for us. 'But of course, we also see people that don't have a clear or fixed ideology. 'We can't say clearly that they're an Islamist terrorist, we can't say clearly that they ascribe to a right-wing ideology. 'Nonetheless, they're consuming large amounts of violent media online, and they might have a mixed or unclear ideology – that means, of course, we still need to be concerned about the threat to the public. 'It's diversified a lot even since 2017 and I think the online environment and the world environment adds a whole new layer of challenge to the threat that we face.'
Leader Live
07-07-2025
- Politics
- Leader Live
Society ‘struggling' to respond to link between smartphones and youth extremism
In an interview as the 20th anniversary of the July 7 attacks is marked, Jonathan Hall KC said current methods used by extremists to influence potential recruits are 'a million miles' from the tactics used in the run up to 2005. Suicide bombers Mohammed Sidique Khan, 30, Shehzad Tanweer, 22, Hasib Hussain, 18, and Jermaine Lindsay, 19, set off bombs on three Tube trains and a bus, killing 52 people in the single worst terrorist atrocity on British soil. Ringleader and recruiter Khan appeared to be a pillar of the community, steering local youths away from crime and drugs by organising outdoor activities and helping to set up a gym in a mosque basement, but was in reality a fanatic. Mr Hall told the PA news agency the wide availability of smartphones has transformed radicalisation since then. 'The principal distinction from the era of 7/7 is the smartphone era,' Mr Hall said. 'That has changed the landscape. It has led to a different model of radicalisation. 'With 7/7 the indications were that Mohammad Sidique Khan was grooming people, there was a youth club, they went and did rafting together. 'Those sorts of outdoorsy, in person, group grooming activities, those feel a million miles away from the online world of radicalisation. 'I'm not aware of any sane person who seeks to argue the current wave of very young people becoming involved in terrorism, or extreme violence where it's not ideological, that that's not related to the internet and to the ready availability of smartphones. 'There's a very live debate about the ethics, the legality and the practicalities of which response is best. 'But we are absolutely grasping at straws and struggling, at the moment, as a society to work out what the correct response is. 'No one in their right minds would allow their children to allow a stranger into their bedroom, but that's what we've done with phones.' The attacks exposed the deadly threat from homegrown terrorists with 'appalling clarity', Mr Hall said. 'What 7/7 did, is it revealed with appalling clarity that our fellow citizens are willing to kill us. 'That very unsettling insight is as true today as it was back then, except you now have to bring in British citizens who have been inspired by extreme right-wing ideology to join the predominant Islamist threat. 'But that was the real kicker from 7/7. I think it really brought home this idea of the homegrown threat.' Commander Dominic Murphy said July 7 was 'a seminal moment' for counter-terrorism policing, leading to a series of changes that continued after the five terror attacks in the UK in 2017. He said that while Islamist groups are still the main threat to the UK, right wing terrorism is a growing problem, and there is concern that younger people are being drawn into extremism. In 2024, 39 of the 248 people arrested for terrorism offences were aged 17 and under, while children aged 11 to 15 made up the largest proportion of those referred to anti-extremism scheme Prevent (2,729 out of 6,884). 'Islamist remains our main threat. We do see a growing right-wing terrorist problem,' Mr Murphy said. 'We're increasingly seeing younger people involved in that right-wing threat as well, which is deeply concerning for us. 'But of course, we also see people that don't have a clear or fixed ideology. 'We can't say clearly that they're an Islamist terrorist, we can't say clearly that they ascribe to a right-wing ideology. 'Nonetheless, they're consuming large amounts of violent media online, and they might have a mixed or unclear ideology – that means, of course, we still need to be concerned about the threat to the public. 'It's diversified a lot even since 2017 and I think the online environment and the world environment adds a whole new layer of challenge to the threat that we face.'
