Draft:CtrlSec (Controling Section): Difference between revisions

Line 3: Line 3:

{{AfC submission|||ts=20251202235258|u=ArchiveSignalObserver|ns=118}}

{{AFC submission|d|ai|u=ArchiveSignalObserver|ns=118|decliner=Wikishovel|declinets=20251202225341|ts=20251202221934}}

{{Infobox organization

| name = CtrlSec

This may take 8 weeks or more, since drafts are reviewed in no specific order. There are 2,160 pending submissions waiting for review.

If the submission is accepted, then this page will be moved into the article space.
If the submission is declined, then the reason will be posted here.
In the meantime, you can continue to improve this submission by editing normally.

Where to get help

If you need help editing or submitting your draft, please ask us a question at the AfC Help Desk or get live help from experienced editors. These venues are only for help with editing and the submission process, not to get reviews.
If you need feedback on your draft, or if the review is taking a lot of time, you can try asking for help on the talk page of a relevant WikiProject. Some WikiProjects are more active than others so a speedy reply is not guaranteed.

Improving your odds of a speedy review

To improve your odds of a faster review, tag your draft with relevant WikiProject tags using the button below. This will let reviewers know a new draft has been submitted in their area of interest. For instance, if you wrote about a female astronomer, you would want to add the Biography, Astronomy, and Women scientists tags.

If you would like to continue working on the submission, click on the “Edit” tab at the top of the window.
If you have not resolved the issues listed above, your draft will be declined again and potentially deleted.
If you need extra help, please ask us a question at the AfC Help Desk or get live help from experienced editors.
Please do not remove reviewer comments or this notice until the submission is accepted.

Where to get help

If you need help editing or submitting your draft, please ask us a question at the AfC Help Desk or get live help from experienced editors. These venues are only for help with editing and the submission process, not to get reviews.
If you need feedback on your draft, or if the review is taking a lot of time, you can try asking for help on the talk page of a relevant WikiProject. Some WikiProjects are more active than others so a speedy reply is not guaranteed.

Improving your odds of a speedy review

Declined by Wikishovel 63 minutes ago. Last edited by Aesurias 2 seconds ago. Reviewer: Inform author.

This draft has been resubmitted and is currently awaiting re-review.

CtrlSec (short for Controlling Section) was a hacktivist group active from 2015 to 2023.^[1] The group used **crowdsourcing to fight** ISIS recruitment and propaganda online, primarily on Twitter.^[2]
The name CtrlSec is inspired by the London Controlling Section, a secret World War II group created by Winston Churchill in 1941 to handle military deception.^[2] Mikro started CtrlSec so volunteers could **monitor and report** extremist accounts.^[2]

History and Affiliation

[edit]

CtrlSec began in early 2015 when Mikro decided to address extremist content on social media.^[3]
The group collaborated with other hacktivist entities, including Anonymous and GhostSec, but **remained independent**.^[4] CtrlSec participated in the #OpISIS movement, contributing after the November 2015 Paris attacks (#OpParis) and the 2016 Brussels bombings (#OpBrussels).^[4]
On 17 January 2023, CtrlSec announced its shutdown on Twitter.

Lara Abdallat, a Jordanian activist and former Miss Jordan (2010), served as the spokesperson for CtrlSec.^[3] She was quoted in interviews stating the group’s objective was to eliminate ISIS and Boko Haram’s online presence in order to “save lives.”^[3] She also stated, “I felt this more intensely” than giving birth when hearing a plot was foiled, and that their hacktivism would only be used “in a humanitarian way.”^[3]

Operations and Methodology

[edit]

CtrlSec used crowdsourced intelligence.^[4] Volunteers identified pro-ISIS accounts, **put them on public blacklists** on platforms like Pastebin, and were instructed to report the accounts themselves to maintain legal compliance.^[4]
Scale of Impact: In March 2015, CtrlSec helped publish a list of **9,200** accounts linked to ISIS.^[3]

Impact and Analysis

[edit]

Intelligence and Academic Use
Researchers frequently used CtrlSec’s data.^[5] For example, Dr. Tamar Mitts, an Assistant Professor at Columbia University, analyzed data collected by CtrlSec on around 15,000 ISIS followers in Europe.^[5] The study specifically examined the link between local anti-Muslim hostility and pro-ISIS radicalization on Twitter.^[6]
CtrlSec’s data contributed to the **ISIS2015-21 dataset**, a long-term project on online extremism hosted on Harvard Dataverse.^[7] The data tables specifically included accounts reported under the “CtrlSec” column, and the group’s real-time identification of accounts was valuable for researchers collecting data before Twitter suspensions occurred.^[7]
Thwarted Attacks
Media coverage, including the Vice Cyberwar series, documented that CtrlSec collaborated with **GhostSec**, directly sharing intelligence.^[1] GhostSec used this shared data to assist law enforcement in disrupting ISIS plots.^[4] This cooperation included providing information that was used by authorities to make arrests in **Tunisia in 2015** and contributing to intelligence streams related to planned arrests in **New York in 2015**.^[4]
Media and Expert Reception
Mikro and CtrlSec were featured in the Vice Media series Cyberwar (Season 1, Episode 10), which covered the digital opposition to ISIS.“Anonymous vs. ISIS”. Cyberwar. Season 1. Episode 10. 2016. VICELAND. E.T. Brooking wrote in Foreign Policy that hacktivist groups such as CtrlSec were effective in identifying extremist content when official moderation systems were inadequate.^[2]