War on terror

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Terror advisor: Lone wolf attacks are changing

By David McCabe - 12/17/14 07:09 PM EST

President Obama's Homeland Security Advisor Lisa Monaco said Wednesday night that the nature of so-called lone wolf attacks like the one that took place in Australia on Monday have changed significantly in recent years.

She said that the ways in which individuals are becoming radicalized have changed with the rise of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, and that the government was still figuring out how to counter their media operation.

“Now, with the evolution, the proliferation, and frankly the prowess that a group like ISIL is making of the social media platform — that has altered the lone wolf, or the homegrown violent extremist, or the lone actor threat that we face in ways that I think we’re just beginning to understand,” she said.

In the past, she said, individuals would turn radical after viewing videos or reading al-Qaeda's english-language magazine. Now, radicalization is a less passive process.

She was speaking at an event hosted by Atlantic Media along with Fran Townsend, who held the advisor role during the Bush administration.

Her comments came days after a gunman who had expressed extremist views took a Sydney, Australia cafe hostage. He was killed, along with two hostages, in a police raid.

Former Deputy Director of the CIA Michael Morell said on Monday that the U.S. should expect lone wolf attacks within the next year.

Monaco also responded to the recent cyber attack against Sony Pictures, likely over the release of the movie "The Interview." On Wednesday, during the panel, the movie was pulled from theaters by the studio.

“I personally think we need to learn the lessons that we have gained from a decade plus of counterterrorism improvement,” she said — noting that she was hoping that the counterterrorism community would become more culturally adept at handling cyber threats.

Monaco and Townsend talked about the intense nature of the job, including having to wake up the president. They both said that the advisor is constantly barraged with information about events and possible threats.

“Do you ever wake up in the morning and things feel good?,” the moderator asked at one point. Monaco’s response was immediate.

Source: http://thehill.com/policy/defense/227517-terror-advisor-nature-of-lone-wolf-attacks-is-changing