Security News > 2020 > January > US Military Claimed 'Success' in Hacking ISIS: Documents
The US military claims to have "Successfully" disrupted the online propaganda efforts of the Islamic State in a hacking operation dating back at least to 2016, according to declassified national security documents released Tuesday.
The heavily redacted, previously top secret documents said the US Cyber Command "Successfully contested ISIS in the information domain" and limited its online efforts on radicalization and recruitment "By imposing time and resource costs" on the jihadist group.
The documents released by the National Security Archive at George Washington University offer the most detailed look at "Operation Glowing Symphony," the first offensive hacking operation acknowledged by the Pentagon.
Officials have previously acknowledged the use of offensive cyber weapons as part of the US arsenal, but the newly released documents offer the most detailed assessment of the moves against ISIS by a joint task force created in 2016 by president Barack Obama.
The hacking operation represents the US response to concerns about how extremist groups had been using social media and online services to promote their cause, often seeking to spread propaganda for recruitment and radicalization.