Europol flags 4,340 URLs tied to 'The Com' extremist network

Europol announced in July 2026 the outcome of referral action days held in June and July against "The Com", which it describes as a nihilistic violent extremist network. Investigators from nine countries referred 4,340 URLs to hosting providers for assessment under their terms of service, with the stated goals of disrupting the network's online ecosystem, limiting the spread of its propaganda and generating new investigative leads.

Europol divides the network into three branches. "Cyber Com is focused on activities such as Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks, doxing, swatting and ransomware attacks"; "Offline Com groups are mostly focused on committing attacks in real life, such as arson, stabbings or murders"; a third branch specialises in sextortion. According to the agency, "groups affiliated with The Com recruit members and groom victims on social media, messaging apps and gaming platforms", and its European Counter Terrorism Centre has observed the network "evolving into a global threat".

Why it matters The Com sits where cybercrime, extremism and the exploitation of minors meet, which is why the action was run by a counter-terrorism centre rather than a cybercrime unit. The same handles, channels and payment trails that an intelligence analyst follows for a ransomware affiliate appear here with a different purpose. For companies, the DDoS, doxing and swatting side of the network is a business risk, not only a public-order one.