Norwegian PM slams tech giants over violent online sect targeting children

Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre convened an emergency meeting with the National Criminal Investigation Service (Kripos) Friday to address the violent online sect The Com, which authorities link to child abuse and extremist content, Dagbladet reports.

Speaking at the 08:45 session, Støre condemned technology companies for failing to curb the sect’s spread, calling them “damn tech giants” who evade responsibility while their platforms host the abuse. “My pulse races just thinking about it,” he said. “They open up our lives, and this is where it happens.”

The sect—also called The Community—operates through subgroups, including 764, Norway’s most prominent branch, tied to multiple criminal cases involving minors. Police, the domestic security agency (PST), Justice Minister Astri Aas-Hansen, and Children’s Ombud Mina Gerhardsen have previously raised alarms over its activities.

Støre acknowledged the global scale of the challenge, noting most tech firms are U.S.-based and face lawsuits there over child safety failures. “They’re the heroes of the modern economy, making huge profits,” he said. “But they must take greater responsibility.”

The meeting included ministers, senior justice officials, and directors from health, family, and policing agencies. Støre stressed the need for tighter collaboration across schools, healthcare, and law enforcement, calling the sect’s ideology “a terrifying, radical universe” where violence—not profit—drives recruitment.

Fredy Joaquin Salazar, Kripos’s section head for child abuse investigations, described The Com as a “cocktail of chaos” exploiting war and misery to lure vulnerable youth.