Terror, tech, and transformation: Will emerging technologies revolutionize terrorism?

Abstract

Abstract Forecasts about how terrorists will utilize emerging technologies often outstrip the materialization of actual threats. The concern is not which technologies terrorists can access, but rather which will prove transformative to the terrorist cause, as the Internet has. These forecasts can be bettered through the application of an adoption model and the concept of proof of practicality. Utilizing these conceptualizations, it is possible to assess if and how emerging and increasingly commercialized technologies like 3D printing, commercial drones, and synthetic biology may be utilized by terrorist organizations both now and in the future.