By 2025, the changing nature of terrorism threat and ensuing dynamics, in a way, has forced the world community stakeholders to reconsider the prescriptions beyond the conventions of security measures. Digital platforms and new technologies appear to be constantly used by terrorist and extremist organizations.
On this understanding, the United Nations Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate (UN CTED) and Tech Against Terrorism have strengthened a strategic partnership. This partnership will empower technology firms, particularly those that are smaller and up-and-coming platforms, to identify, interfere, and stop terrorist misuse, without undermining human rights and liberty of expression.
Building a cooperative framework for digital counterterrorism
This section explores the origins and formalization of the collaboration between UN CTED and Tech Against Terrorism. It examines how their joint efforts establish a scalable model for global digital response.
Origins and pillars of Tech Against Terrorism
In April 2017, with the support of the UN CTED, Tech Against Terrorism arose in response to the requirement of smaller tech companies which have no counterterrorism capability. Its three pillars consist of outreach, sharing of knowledge and practical aid. In global workshops and with a Knowledge Sharing Platform, startups learn best practices, and tools to address extremist misuse of their services.
The program is needed to coordinate such a total gap. Many of the small platforms do not have efficient content moderation and technical infrastructure, and they are targeted by the exploitation.Tech Against Terrorism’s direct support model helps these entities build capacity and resilience.
Formalizing cooperation with UN CTED
In June 2025, UN CTED and Tech Against Terrorism entered into the Memorandum of Understanding finalizing their cooperation. Assistant-Secretary-General Natalia Gherman and Adam Hadley of Tech Against Terrorism made a promise on coordinated outreach, intelligence sharing and capacity development.
Natalia Gherman stressed the effectiveness of integration of the policy knowledge of UN CTED into the industry-level involvement of the initiative that serves as the coordinated response on a global scale. Hadley observed that today, the issue of counterterrorism requires the balance of security with human rights, which is actively being carried out by the partnership.
Addressing the challenges of terrorist use of technology
This section analyzes how emerging threats shape counterterrorism needs online—and what tools and frameworks are being developed to meet them.
The evolving nature of terrorist threats online
Terrorists have since deployed the use of social media, encrypted apps, AI-created propaganda and real-time streaming sites to recruit and plan events around the world. The tools raise reach and anonymity and make it difficult to detect them.
To confront this, the partnership supports initiatives like the Data Science Network—a resource for experts using automated solutions to detect extremist content on smaller platforms lacking advanced infrastructure.
Supporting smaller tech companies and startups
Major platforms benefit from extensive resources for content moderation. However, smaller companies often lack such capabilities and may become inadvertent hosts to extremist content. The increased UN-Tech cooperation guarantees customized technical support, and these platforms deploy optimal moderation and detection tools as they guide them in workshops and make advisory suggestions.
The initiative limits digital safe houses where terrorists can find havens and make it more resilient throughout the tech ecosystem.
Strategic implications for policy and regulatory frameworks
In this section we measure the alliance’s contribution to the greater digital policy coherence, protection of human rights, and regulatory convergence in the global community.
Enhancing global digital cooperation
The MoU and parallel MoU between CTED and GIFCT point to a trend of multilateral digital counterterrorism coordination. Governments, civil society, and tech sectors converge around shared understanding of the misuse of technologies like ICT and AI.
The alliance supports policy innovation and harmonization of regulatory frameworks—ensuring that anti-extremism measures do not undermine privacy or civil liberties.
Training, knowledge exchange, and capacity building
The partnership plans a series of joint workshops and knowledge sites focusing on operational case studies, policy development, and technical best practices. These engagements are not theoretical, but designed to build practical skills among governments and tech providers to address extremist content rapidly and effectively.
Balancing security objectives with human rights
This section examines how the partnership ensures ethical application of technology in counterterrorism—with transparency, fairness, and legal safeguards.
Protecting fundamental freedoms
An important feature of this collaboration is explicit inclusion of human rights guidance. Tech Against Terrorism promotes an open approach to moderation, accountability in takedown decisions and due process. The integration of right-based frameworks aims to avoid overreaching the alliance and keeping the provision of digital democracy intact.
Ethical considerations in technology deployment
The alliance promotes the communication between technologists, lawyers, and human rights activists to reduce algorithmic discrimination and abuse. Minimizing the effect of tools used in counterterrorism that affects marginalized groups disproportionately is part of trust and legitimacy in the work of counterterrorism.
Emerging trends and future directions
This final round of inquiry describes some of the most important innovations and controversies that define the future of cooperation in digital counterterrorism.
Innovation in automated content moderation
The newest initiatives facilitated by this alliance involve the use of machine learning models, natural language processing, and image recognition applications that are customized towards detecting and countering terrorist propaganda on a timely basis. Data Science Network provides small platforms with universal access to technical know-how and the diffusion of innovation.
Addressing encryption and privacy challenges
Intelligence and moderation continue to face a challenge using encrypted platforms. The alliance promotes the discussion of voluntary data sharing models, metadata analysis methods, and cryptography that can consider privacy, but at the same time facilitate legal monitoring.
The strengthened collaboration between UN CTED and Tech Against Terrorism is a strategic shift in the approach to countering terrorism as the combination of policy-making power and technological solutions. It can transform the ways of global communities to identify and prevent extremists exploitation via the internet through the exchange of knowledge, scalable products, and rights-based approaches. Keeping this partnership alive and relevant to new challenges and making sure that electronic security does not trade off on the ability to exercise core civil liberties will be the real test.
