Jihadist organisations remain a major security risk for Europe 25 years after the attacks on the United States, but EU authorities say a different danger is increasingly emerging online and is being driven largely by young people. Ahead of the 25th anniversary of 11 September 2001, EU Counter-Terrorism Coordinator Bartjan Wegter said jihadists still pose “a major threat”, while warning that investigators have also been disrupting what is being described as nihilistic violent extremism. The exact scale of the online network behind the movement is not clear. Disrupted URLs Linked To “The COM”Police investigators from nine European countries identified about 4,340 URL addresses linked to “The COM”, the online community’s name. The activity was targeted in a disruption operation conducted in June and July, according to officials involved in the investigation. Europol does not hold dedicated statistics for nihilistic violent extremism. The agency says definitions vary, and some incidents may fall under ordinary criminality as well as terrorism. Terrorism Figures Across The EUOverall, 45 terrorist attacks were reported across 10 of the EU’s 27 member states last year. None were described as major, mass-casualty incidents. About half of the plots were foiled or failed, and six people were killed. Europol said 486 people suspected of terrorism links were arrested in 21 EU countries. Jihadist groups were behind 24 of the attacks and accounted for more than 70% of the arrests. Among those taken into custody, around one third were aged under 18, mostly boys, the EU said. Attacks With No Clear Political MotiveAuthorities have pointed to cases in which perpetrators appear to seek notoriety or status through online audiences rather than a defined political agenda. In Finland in 2025, a 16-year-old boy stabbed three female student colleagues. He allegedly shared a “manifesto” in WhatsApp groups, recorded the attack on Snapchat, and asked on social media for people to save and later receive the video after his release. The EU document on emerging nihilistic extremism said there was no political motive for the rampage. Italy reported a similar pattern last year, when a 15-year-old boy planned a murder to gain recognition online. He kept images and videos of assaults, murders, school shootings and child sexual abuse material on his phone, according to Italian authorities relayed in the EU reporting. Wegter said such incidents, which authorities say have been rising for two or three years, are not isolated and are organised through online networks that often involve young people, particularly boys. He said they can translate into offline violence, including stabbings carried out “for no reason whatsoever”, such as attacks on elderly people. Encrypted Spaces And AI-Driven PropagandaInvestigators, Wegter said, face challenges in preventing or tracking attacks because many suspects have no criminal record and leave limited traces beyond the online environment. He said the activity often takes place behind encrypted platforms and closed communities. Among the groups monitored by authorities is 764. The organisation was founded by Bradley Cadenhead, an American who dropped out of high school. Cadenhead is serving an 80-year prison sentence for child pornography and sex offences, but the group continues to operate. In Germany last year, a 20-year-old man believed to be a leading member of 764 faced 123 charges involving murder, rape and the sexual abuse of children, the EU document said. Europol said criminals also exploit images and audio to produce and edit propaganda, including through deepfakes, memes and GIFs. It said AI-powered bots have been used to boost recruitment and promote extremist ideologies, while AI-driven applications have supported research into attack preparation. Wegter said the online environment remains “too permissive”, describing it as a setting where threats can connect and intensify. He argued that law enforcement must be equipped for an era in which 85% of investigations take place digitally, and said authorities need to work more closely with counterparts in other countries where such groups may operate beyond borders. Join the discussion? 8 September 2026
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