The FBI might label you an Incel if you use certain words online

The FBI is flagging a handful of terms online that could indicate that someone is an incel.

An incel, meaning "involuntary celibate", is an online subculture of young men who deem themselves unattractive and unable to attract the opposite sex. They often hold hostile views towards women and sexually active men.

In a glossary of terms obtained by The Heritage Foundation’s Oversight Project, the FBI shared words and phrases that could be linked to inciting "violent extremism" online.

"Docs we obtained show how @FBI equates protected online speech to violence," the watchdog wrote on Twitter. "According to @FBI using the terms ‘based’ or ‘red pilled’ are signs of 'Racially or Ethnically Motivated Violent Extremism.'"

Words such as "Chad," Stacey," "red pill" and "looksmaxxing" can allegedly get you on an FBI list for "Involuntary Celibate Violent Extremism."

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Last year, A Channel 4 documentary, The Secret World of Incels, delved into the dark community.

Many of the men had no friends in real life with most, if not all, of their connections being made online. The community of around 18,000 men in one forum were said to believe women were the enemy. The show claimed that around 2,000 of these reside in the UK.

One of the FBI terms "looksmaxxing" refers to the drastic measures some incel men are willing to take to alter their appearance. One person confessed to hammering himself in the face to "make himself more attractive".

"It’s not uncommon for people in the looksmaxxing industry to get a hammer," the masked man says, tapping a hammer on his face to show how it works.

"You think, 'Ok, what part of my face would I like to improve? My cheekbones, my jaw, my chin, my orbitals.'"

Worryingly, it was revealed that one incel forum spoke about rape "every 29 minutes."

The documentary went on to touch on tragic real-world dangers, with 22-year-old Elliot Rodger who went on a killing spree in 2014 where he took the lives of six people in California.

In 2021, self-confessed incel Jake Davidson, 22, also killed five people in the UK before taking his own life.

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