Dark Web’s Grip on Boys: Shadowy Online Network Manipulates Teens into Violence

[Social Media]

 

A disturbing online network known as 'The Com' is luring children as young as 11 into carrying out horrific acts of violence and cruelty, raising alarms among authorities. The network, which operates on encrypted platforms like Telegram and Discord, preys on young boys, coercing them into committing despicable acts as a means of initiation and progression.

 

Concerns over 'The Com' have reached the highest levels of government, with the National Crime Agency (NCA) briefing ministers on its dangers. Home Secretary Yvette Cooper has expressed serious concern over the rise of this underground group, which includes sub-factions with names such as the Maniacs Murder Cult, the No Lives Matter Cult, Brotherhood of Blood, and the Cult of White Misanthrope. The sinister network primarily targets boys between the ages of 11 and 17, grooming them into increasingly extreme behaviors.

 

 

New recruits are often forced to prove themselves through sickening initiation rituals, such as destroying property in their communities, harming their younger siblings or classmates, or even abusing pets and stray animals. Those who show the greatest willingness to engage in violence rise through the ranks. According to an inside source, these recruits are viewed as mere pawns by higher-ranking members. "For alphas in the network, new entrants are just fodder to be persuaded to commit acts of violence, to generate more unique content for the group – some of which can be sold on to other networks – and ultimately, to be extorted for money," the source revealed.

 

The issue has been brought into public consciousness by the Netflix drama Adolescence, which follows a boy’s descent into violence after being manipulated online. A source confirmed that the show has helped raise awareness about the dangerous influence of online networks.

 

Safeguarding minister Jess Phillips acknowledged the growing concern among parents, stating, "Many parents will have been watching Adolescence and asking: how real is this?" She added, "What the experts in the Home Office warned me was that The Com is one of the biggest threats facing young boys in our country: a loose affiliation of online networks operating in the encrypted shadows of social media and instant messaging platforms."

 

Efforts to tackle this growing crisis are underway, with the NCA collaborating with international law enforcement agencies in the United States, the Philippines, and New Zealand to disrupt the spread of harmful content and identify those responsible. The UK Government is also calling on social media platforms to take urgent action against these groups.

 

Baroness Jones, a former deputy mayor of London and advocate for women's rights, expressed deep concern over the impact of these groups on young minds. "This is a very distressing account of practices that harm the boys themselves, as well as the animals or people who are targeted," she said. "It is exactly the sort of online material that needs banning immediately and the organisers prosecuted, for the possible later crimes of blackmail and extortion, but also for the crime of damaging young minds."

 

Joeli Brearley, campaigner and co-host of the To Be a Boy podcast, described the situation as terrifying. "It makes you feel sick to the stomach as a parent, and I feel a constant fear about where this is heading," she said. "Ninety-nine per cent of parents are completely unprepared and naive – they have no clue what their children are doing online."

 

She emphasized the importance of parental vigilance, urging parents to maintain open conversations with their children about their online activities. "You can't stop kids seeing things online, but it is important to have those conversations with them about what they are seeing, make them feel like they can come to you. And never judge them when they do – or they will stop talking to you."

 

Brearley also pointed out the need for better support for boys, warning that many young males feel lost and vulnerable to dangerous influences. "Boys are feeling not championed. These sites give them a sense of community, trick them into thinking this is what it means to be a man. We need to be better at filling their void."

 

As authorities work to dismantle these harmful networks, the growing fear remains: how many more boys will fall victim before real change is made?

 

Based on a report by The Daily Mail  2025-03-18

 

 

[PETERTHEEATER]

This is a disturbing report.

[talisman01]

There's more to this than stated in the article...

 

https://krebsonsecurity.com/2024/09/the-dark-nexus-between-harm-groups-and-the-com/

[bendejo]

Maybe things would be better if they stuck with inhaling pods of washing soap.

https://health.clevelandclinic.org/laundry-detergent-pod-challenge-risks-to-teens