SW News: The risk of terrorism is rising in Britain, according to UK Home Secretary Suella Braverman, adding that the country now faces a domestic terrorist threat that is less predictable, harder to detect, and harder to investigate.

Braverman said terrorism is now a persistent and evolving threat, primarily from Islamist terrorist groups abroad, in the context of the British government's recently released counter-terrorism policy, CONTEST, which was revised for the first time in five years.

She went on to say that terrorists have been working in a setting where technology continues to present counterterrorism efforts with both opportunity and risk. After at least five terrorist attacks occurred in the UK in 2017. This featured the bombing of the Manchester Arena and the attack on London Bridge, as well as at least nine further terrorist incidents in the years that followed.

According to the UK Home Office, the British government prevented up to 39 terrorist acts out of the total threats.

Islamist terrorism is the primary domestic terrorist threat in the UK, according to this year's CONTEST report. As of March 2023, this alone accounts for roughly 67% of attacks since 2018, and 64% of those in custody for terrorism-related offences.

Right-wing extremism is a significant threat that the UK Home Office has identified. According to the study, this accounts for at least 22% of attacks that have occurred since 2018. The data show that 28% of individuals in detention had been held for offenses connected to terrorism or extremism.

According to the CONTEST report, new technologies and online platforms are becoming increasingly accessible, which presents both opportunity and risk for the counterterrorism efforts.

Terrorists exploit technology to conceal their networks, disseminate their propaganda, and facilitate their attacks. In the UK terrorism report, it is said that technology “is a critical enabler of our counter-terrorism efforts, where careful and proportionate use of cutting-edge techniques can make our response more efficient and effective."