TechRadar cites Flashpoint’s co-founder Evan Kohlmann.
“It’s great to be able to assist with investigations after the fact and put those responsible in jail, but that doesn’t save human lives. Prevention is the goal – that’s the next frontier.”
TechRadar profiled Flashpoint co-founder Evan Kohlmann’s deep web research methods for tracking extremist and criminal activity online.
Who did TechRadar profile from Flashpoint, and why?
TechRadar profiled Flashpoint co-founder Evan Kohlmann for building a career tracking terrorists and criminals online. The article describes how his early work identified a major intelligence blind spot: extremist coordination on internet forums and other deep web venues.
What core intelligence challenge does the article highlight about the deep web?
The deep web creates scale and signal-to-noise problems for investigators. The article emphasizes that illicit communities can generate overwhelming volumes of content across forums, Tor-accessible sites, and messaging platforms, making early warning difficult without strong leads and efficient collection and search.
How does the profiled analyst operate safely in illicit online communities?
He prioritizes blending in by using the same access methods as the actors he’s observing. The article describes “mimicking and mirroring” behavior and traffic patterns—using tools like Tor or proxies when those are the norms in a given forum—so collection doesn’t stand out and trigger bans or compromise access.
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