OTTAWA — Move over Angry Birds, angry extremists are looking to capture more than just market share and give new meaning to the phrase killer app.
The Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant's online reach seemed to know no bounds in 2015, with brutal YouTube video executions, Twitter messaging and even good old-fashioned chat rooms, but defence contractors and security groups are now warning the extremist organization has developed its own smart phone application.
It can be used on Android devices and gives access to the online portal Amaq News Agency, which western intelligence officers, who spoke on background, claim is associated with the Islamic State's propaganda arm.
Separately, the app also contains written accounts of life under the self-declared caliphate, battlefield reports, statements on executions and perhaps most importantly videos.
Canada's top military commander, Gen. Jon Vance, says the app doesn't represent some great technical achievement, but it a concern as a tool for possible radicalization.
The Canadian Press