Introduction
Since 2020, GIFCT has convened an annual series of multistakeholder Working Groups to focus on critical themes related to countering terrorism and violent extremism online. Working Groups bring together representatives from industry, academia, civil society, and government, from diverse stakeholder groups, geographies, and disciplines to offer advice in specific thematic areas. GIFCT Working Groups deliver targeted, substantive projects and publications to advance GIFCT’s Mission and inform its work. GIFCT Working Groups convene in a variety of formats, including “Communities of Practice,” which allow for more dedicated practitioner-focused sessions.
Each year, Working Groups are convened to focus on key issues and to allow new participants to join. The 2026 Working Groups will focus on the following three themes:
- Signals Community of Practice (SCOP)
- Gaming and Youth Working Group (GYWG)
- Countering the Financing of Terrorism Online Working Group (CFTO)
Signals Community of Practice (SCOP)
This Community of Practice will bring together teams from GIFCT Member companies and platforms working towards joining GIFCT (as part of GIFCT’s Membership Advisory Program) to develop a better understanding around threat detection and information sharing across platforms. This Working Group will build off the gaps identified in GIFCT’s 2025 Investigator’s Community of Practice.
Gaming and Youth Working Group (GYWG)
The aim of this Working Group will be to identify and scale best practices to prevent terrorists and violent extremists (TVE) from exploiting online games, gaming-adjacent services, and the wider gaming community, particularly concerning younger audiences. This theme builds off of previous outputs and addresses gaps and recommendations raised by GIFCT’s 2024 Gaming Community of Practice and 2025 Addressing Youth Radicalization and Mobilization Working Group.
Countering the Financing of Terrorism Online Working Group (CFTO)
This Working Group will bring together a multistakeholder cohort of international experts, practitioners, and industry representatives to consider the emerging threats and risk areas in terrorist financial activity online. This group will consider how modern terrorist and violent extremist (TVE) networks have exploited online outlets to further their financing and map where there are gaps in traditional counterterrorism strategies when applied to the online threat landscape. The group will analyze the various financial touch points across different platforms and payment types, such as marketplace, cryptocurrency pathways, funding campaigns, and traditional financial information shared on messaging platforms.