I 

118TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 9317 

To require the Secretary of Homeland Security to conduct annual assessments 

on terrorism threats to the United States posed by terrorist organizations 

utilizing foreign cloud-based mobile or desktop messaging applications, 

and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

AUGUST 6, 2024 

Mr. PFLUGER (for himself and Mr. PANETTA) introduced the following bill; 

which was referred to the Committee on Homeland Security 

A BILL 

To require the Secretary of Homeland Security to conduct 

annual assessments on terrorism threats to the United 

States posed by terrorist organizations utilizing foreign 

cloud-based mobile or desktop messaging applications, 

and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Counter Terrorgram 

5 Act of 2024’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. SENSE OF CONGRESS REGARDING THE USE OF FOR2 EIGN CLOUD-BASED MOBILE AND DESKTOP 

3 MESSAGING APPLICATIONS FOR TERRORIST 

4 ACTIVITY. 

5 It is the sense of Congress that— 

6 (1) the heightened terrorism threat landscape 

7 and the increasing utilization of foreign cloud-based 

8 mobile and desktop messaging applications by ter9 rorist organizations represent a national security 

10 threat, and the challenges posed by such threat are 

11 not well understood; and 

12 (2) the Department of Homeland Security, in 

13 consultation with the Office of the Director of Na14 tional Intelligence, must take steps to recognize, as15 sess, and address such threat, thereby reducing risks 

16 to the people of the United States. 

17 SEC. 3. ANNUAL ASSESSMENTS ON TERRORISM THREATS 

18 TO THE UNITED STATES POSED BY TER19 RORIST ORGANIZATIONS UTILIZING FOREIGN 

20 CLOUD-BASED MOBILE AND DESKTOP MES21 SAGING APPLICATIONS. 

22 (a) ASSESSMENTS.— 

23 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days 

24 after the date of the enactment of this Act and an25 nually thereafter for five years, the Secretary of 

26 Homeland Security, in consultation with the DirecVerDate Sep 11 2014 03:34 Sep 07, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H9317.IH H9317

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1 tor of National Intelligence, shall submit to the ap2 propriate congressional committees an assessment of 

3 terrorism threats to the United States posed by ter4 rorist organizations utilizing foreign cloud-based mo5 bile or desktop messaging applications. 

6 (2) CONTENTS.—The terrorism threat assess7 ments under paragraph (1) shall address the fol8 lowing: 

9 (A) In the first such assessment, an anal10 ysis of incidents in which terrorist organizations 

11 have utilized foreign cloud-based mobile and 

12 desktop messaging applications to facilitate the 

13 ability to radicalize and recruit individuals. 

14 (B) Information related to online payment 

15 features of foreign cloud-based mobile and desk16 top messaging applications, and how such fea17 tures provide monetary support to terrorist or18 ganizations. 

19 (C) Recommendations on appropriate 

20 measures to address terrorism threats to the 

21 United States posed by terrorist organizations 

22 utilizing foreign cloud-based mobile or desktop 

23 messaging applications. 

24 (3) COORDINATION.—Each terrorism threat as25 sessment under paragraph (1)— 


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1 (A) shall be coordinated with the Office of 

2 the General Counsel, the Privacy Office, and 

3 the Office of for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties 

4 of the Department of Homeland Security prior 

5 to release outside the Department to ensure 

6 each such assessment complies with applicable 

7 law and protects individuals’ privacy, civil 

8 rights, and civil liberties, and 

9 (B) may be informed by existing products, 

10 as appropriate. 

11 (4) FORM.—Each terrorism threat assessment 

12 under paragraph (1) shall be submitted in unclassi13 fied form, but may include a classified annex only 

14 for the protection of intelligence sources and meth15 ods relating to the matters contained in such assess16 ment. The Secretary of Homeland Security shall 

17 post on a publicly available website of the Depart18 ment of Homeland Security the unclassified portion 

19 of each such assessment. 

20 (5) BRIEFING.—Not later than 30 days after 

21 the submission of each terrorism threat assessment 

22 under paragraph (1), the Secretary of Homeland Se23 curity shall annually brief the appropriate congres24 sional committees regarding each such assessment. 

25 The head of any other relevant Federal department 


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1 or agency shall join the Secretary for any such brief2 ing if any such committee, in consultation with the 

3 Secretary, determines such is appropriate. 

4 (6) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMIT5 TEES.—In this subsection, the term ‘‘appropriate 

6 congressional committees’’ means the Committee on 

7 Homeland Security and the Permanent Select Com8 mittee on Intelligence of the House of Representa9 tives and the Committee on Homeland Security and 

10 Governmental Affairs and the Select Committee on 

11 Intelligence of the Senate. 

12 (b) INFORMATION SHARING.—The Secretary of 

13 Homeland Security shall review information relating to 

14 terrorism threats to the United States posed by terrorist 

15 organizations utilizing foreign cloud-based mobile or desk16 top messaging applications that is gathered by State and 

17 local fusion centers and the National Network of Fusion 

18 Centers, and incorporate such information, as appropriate, 

19 into the Department of Homeland Security’s own informa20 tion relating to such. The Secretary shall ensure the dis21 semination to State and local fusion centers and the Na22 tional Network of Fusion Centers of such information. 

23 (c) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

24 (1) FOREIGN CLOUD-BASED MOBILE OR DESK25 TOP MESSAGING APPLICATIONS.— 


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1 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘foreign 

2 cloud-based mobile or desktop messaging appli3 cations’’— 

4 (i) includes the applications specified 

5 in subparagraph (B); and 

6 (ii) means a person or entity that 

7 owns or operates one or more social media 

8 platforms that are domiciled in or has 

9 links to any of the following— 

10 (I) a foreign adversary (as such 

11 term is defined in section 7.2 of sub12 part A of part 7 of subtitle A of title 

13 15, Code of Federal Regulations); 

14 (II) a person owned by, con15 trolled by, or subject to the jurisdic16 tion or direction of a foreign adver17 sary; or 

18 (III) a terrorist organization. 

19 (B) APPLICATIONS SPECIFIED.—The appli20 cations specified in this subparagraph include 

21 the following: 

22 (i) ByteDance. 

23 (ii) Douyin. 

24 (iii) Redz. 

25 (iv) Tamtam. 


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1 (v) Telegram. 

2 (vi) TikTok. 

3 (vii) Vkontakte. 

4 (viii) WeChat. 

5 (ix) Weibo. 

6 (x) Zapya. 

7 (xi) Any other application the Sec8 retary of Homeland Security, in consulta9 tion with the Director of National Intel10 ligence, determines appropriate. 

11 (2) FUSION CENTER.—The term ‘‘fusion cen12 ter’’ has the meaning given such term in subsection 

13 (k) of section 210A of the Homeland Security Act 

14 of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 124h). 

15 (3) NATIONAL NETWORK OF FUSION CEN16 TERS.—The term ‘‘National Network of Fusion Cen17 ters’’ means a decentralized arrangement of fusion 

18 centers intended to enhance the ability of individual 

19 State and local fusion centers to leverage the capa20 bilities and expertise of all such fusion centers for 

21 the purpose of enhancing analysis and homeland se22 curity information sharing nationally. 

23 (4) TERRORIST ORGANIZATION.—The term 

24 ‘‘terrorist organization’’ means— 


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1 (A) any entity designated as a foreign ter2 rorist organization pursuant to section 219 of 

3 the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 

4 1189); or 

5 (B) any entity engaged in terrorism, as 

6 such term is defined in section 2(18) of the 

7 Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 

8 101(18)). 

Æ 


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