Pfluger Introduces Bill to Address Terror Threats Associated with Apps Like TikTok

WASHINGTON, D.C. –– Rep. August Pfluger (R-TX), Chairman of the House Homeland Security Subcommittee on Counterterrorism, Law Enforcement, and Intelligence, and Rep. Jimmy Panetta (D-CA) introduced a bill to require the secretary of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to conduct annual assessments on terrorism threats posed to the United States by terrorist organizations utilizing foreign, cloud-based mobile and desktop messaging applications.

“More than 20 years after 9/11, the advent of cloud-based technology has given terrorist groups even more tools to use in their pursuit of deadly chaos,” Chairman Pfluger said.“Foreign-controlled apps like TikTok and encrypted messaging platforms like Telegram have shined a disturbing light on the lengths America’s enemies will go to attack our way of life and radicalize young minds with violent extremist ideology, as well as the terrifying potency of their grotesque messages when disseminated on platforms with almost unlimited reach. Considering the heightened threat landscape created by terrorist organizations around the world, especially as we’ve seen just last October with the devastating terrorist attack in Israel, DHS must take steps to assess and address this threat before it’s too late.”

“Advancements in foreign cloud-based messaging present new challenges in our work countering terrorism,” Rep. Panetta said. “This bipartisan legislation would ensure the Department of Homeland Security is properly monitoring these vulnerabilities and assessing the threats they pose to our national security. Better understanding how terrorist networks communicate is essential to stopping future attacks.”

Background:

• Foreign cloud-based mobile and desktop messaging applications like TikTok and Telegram have allowed their platforms to become a breeding ground for radical extremism. Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTOs) like Hamas, Hizballah, ISIS, Al-Qaeda, and others frequently use foreign-owned cloud-based mobile and desktop applications to recruit new members, fundraise, provoke others to violence, and coordinate terrorist activity. ISIS has even urged its supporters to connect with ISIS contacts on Telegram to discuss matters like travel to ISIS-held territory. 
• Since Hamas’ October 7, 2023, terror attacks in Israel, we have seen multiple instances in which Hamas’ military wing, Al-Qassam Brigades, utilized foreign applications to spread extremist and grotesque content online and called for additional terrorist attacks against the United States and Israel.
• In December, Subcommittee Chairman Pfluger held a roundtable on the growing trend of anti-Semitism on U.S. college campuses, especially through social media, in the aftermath of the October 7 attacks against Israel by Hamas terrorists. 
• In March, the Committee convened a hearing to examine the current status of Iran’s axis of resistance and the implications for homeland security and U.S. interests. The Committee heard testimony from officials at the Department of Homeland Security, the Department of Justice, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the State Department.
• In May, Committee Chairman Mark E. Green, MD (R-TN) and Subcommittee Chairman Pfluger sent a letter to now-impeached DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas and Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Director Christopher Wray, requesting information and documents pertaining to any efforts by DHS and the FBI to assist law enforcement and other partners in response to anti-Semitic, pro-Hamas mobs on college campuses.
• Millions of TikTok users have recently viewed videos glorifying Osama bin Laden’s “Letter to America,” which attempted to promote and justify al-Qaeda’s terrorist attack against the United States on September 11, 2001. Pro-ISIS TikTok accounts have also been found celebrating a recent attack in Paris, where a man who had allegedly videotaped a pledge of allegiance to ISIS killed a man and hurt two others using a hammer and a knife. 
• In January, Subcommittee Chairman Pfluger sent a letter to Secretary Mayorkas and Director Wray, requesting a briefing on the departments’ work as part of the administration’s ongoing interagency review of TikTok, which is owned by the Chinese firm ByteDance Ltd. Chairman Pfluger received the briefing in February.