Terrorists Now Using Gaming Platforms to Target Youth and Children: UN

A new trends report by the United Nations Security Council’s Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate (CTED) has revealed that terrorist organizations are increasingly turning to online gaming platforms, extremely violent content, and toxic online subcultures to target young people and children.
The report, titled “Beyond Messaging: Terrorist Propaganda as Operational Infrastructure,” found that terrorist groups no longer treat propaganda merely as a communication tool but as core operational infrastructure — used for recruitment, radicalization, fundraising, operational planning, and even reinforcing governance-like control in areas under their influence.
Beyond gaming platforms, the report flagged growing convergence between violent extremist ideologies across the online ecosystem, the use of technology-facilitated gender-based violence, and misogynistic online platforms as emerging concerns. Terrorist groups active particularly in Africa, and Central and South Asia are exploiting local grievances and using propaganda extensively to raise funds.
CTED warned that the rapidly evolving tactics of terrorist groups have created a significant “gap” between their pace of adaptation and the response capacity of member states, legal frameworks, and digital platforms. The report stressed that counter-terrorism measures must treat propaganda not simply as content but as a key driver of terrorism — while remaining firmly grounded in international human rights law.