UGR participates in H2020 project on preventing radicalisation online

Tue, 07/17/2018 - 09:29
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17/07/2018
A laptop with code running and a lockpad superimposed on top of the screen

The University of Granada will take part in the EU Horizon 2020 project ‘PROPHETS: Preventing Radicalisation Online through the Proliferation of Harmonised Toolkits’, which aims to tackle the causes of online radicalisation, cybercrime and cyberterrorism. The heightened globalisation of mass communication in recent years and the ever-increasing presence of the Internet in all aspects of society have exposed European citizens and businesses to an array of online threats that jeopardise democratic ideals.

In this regard, cyberspace is increasingly being used as a medium for illegally funding, recruiting, training and inciting individuals who are opposed to European social and democratic principles. It is important to note that these phenomena extend well beyond Jihadist terrorism, encompassing the violent extremism of the far right and far left at both the EU and international level.  

PROPHETS strives to develop new methods to analyse, investigate and fight these emerging threats by addressing the very factors causing them. Specifically, it seeks to prevent cybercriminal behaviour and activities through the development of a coherent EU-wide security model that rests on four fundamental pillars:

1. Early identification of security threats;

2. Investigations conducted within the framework of new public-private governance initiatives

3. More comprehensive and effective approaches in response to the expansion of the security perimeter and the emergence of challenging jurisdictional problems;

4. The perception of security and freedom among citizens, which requires new communication strategies for enforcement agencies and security policymakers.

With regard to its key strategic outcomes, the project aims to develop new methods for the analysis and synthesis of behavioural radicalisation; to create open source behavioural investigation and analysis tools, as well as a best practice roadmap and policy training toolkit; and to proactively raise cyber risk awareness. The University of Granada will participate in the project alongside other prestigious institutions from Germany, the UK, Croatia, Italy, Greece, Bulgaria, Estonia, Holland, Spain, and Belgium. The project has a total budget of €2.99 million and will be carried out between 2018 and 2021.

Contact information:

Antonio Sánchez Ortega

Department of Public International Law and International Relations

University of Granada

Telephone no.: +34 958247011 / +34 958248582

Email: @email