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An Islamic State agent tried to recruit an undercover reporter to carry out the London Bridge attack a year before it happened.

Makers of BBC programme Inside Out London said one of its journalists was encouraged by the IS suspect to target London Bridge alone or in a group.

Eight people were killed and dozens of people injured when a van ploughed into pedestrians on the bridge before three terrorists stabbed victims during a rampage through Borough Market on June 3 this year.

The BBC said the details given to their undercover reporter bore striking similarities to the London Bridge attack.

The same IS suspect also revealed details of terrorist tutorials on the dark web including a step by step guide on how to make a bomb and create a fake suicide vest.

There were also illustrations on how to attack a victim with a knife to cause maximum damage.

London Bridge and Borough Market terrorist attack 30 show all London Bridge and Borough Market terrorist attack 1/30 Police and paramedics treat an injured person Daniel Sorabji/AFP/Getty Images 2/30 A woman is helped to an ambulance at London Bridge Daniel Sorabji/AFP/Getty Images 3/30 Armed police at London Bridge Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire 4/30 Emergency personnel tend to wounded on London Bridge Yui Mok/PA Wire 5/30 Daniel Sorabji/AFP/Getty Images 6/30 Daniel Sorabji/AFP/Getty Images 7/30 Debris and abandoned cars remain on London Bridge Chris J Ratcliffe/AFP/Getty Images 8/30 People walking down Borough High Street Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire 9/30 Armed Police officers on London Bridge Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire 10/30 People flee along Borough High Street Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire 11/30 Police officers outside the Barrowboy and Banker Public House on Borough High Street Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire 12/30 Shocked onlookers in Borough High Street Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire 13/30 Police sniffer dogs on London Bridge Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire 14/30 Armed Police talk to members of the public outside London Bridge Hospital Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire 15/30 People run down Borough High Street Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire 16/30 A helicopter lands on London Bridge Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire 17/30 An armed officer on London Bridge Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire 18/30 Police officers on Borough High Street Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire 19/30 Emergency personnel on London Bridge Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire 20/30 Armed police on Borough High Street Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire 21/30 Armed Police officer looks through his weapon on London Bridge Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire 22/30 People run along Borough High Street Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire 23/30 Police at the scene on Southwark Bridge Carl Court/Getty Images 24/30 A paramedic rushes to the scene Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire 25/30 An armed officer on London Bridge Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire 26/30 A paramedic at the scene Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire 27/30 Armed police on Borough High Street Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire 28/30 Emergency personnel on London Bridge Yui Mok/PA Wire 29/30 Police officers outside the Barrowboy and Banker Public House on Borough High Street Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire 30/30 People are lead to safety away from London Bridge Carl Court/Getty Images 1/30 Police and paramedics treat an injured person Daniel Sorabji/AFP/Getty Images 2/30 A woman is helped to an ambulance at London Bridge Daniel Sorabji/AFP/Getty Images 3/30 Armed police at London Bridge Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire 4/30 Emergency personnel tend to wounded on London Bridge Yui Mok/PA Wire 5/30 Daniel Sorabji/AFP/Getty Images 6/30 Daniel Sorabji/AFP/Getty Images 7/30 Debris and abandoned cars remain on London Bridge Chris J Ratcliffe/AFP/Getty Images 8/30 People walking down Borough High Street Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire 9/30 Armed Police officers on London Bridge Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire 10/30 People flee along Borough High Street Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire 11/30 Police officers outside the Barrowboy and Banker Public House on Borough High Street Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire 12/30 Shocked onlookers in Borough High Street Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire 13/30 Police sniffer dogs on London Bridge Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire 14/30 Armed Police talk to members of the public outside London Bridge Hospital Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire 15/30 People run down Borough High Street Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire 16/30 A helicopter lands on London Bridge Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire 17/30 An armed officer on London Bridge Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire 18/30 Police officers on Borough High Street Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire 19/30 Emergency personnel on London Bridge Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire 20/30 Armed police on Borough High Street Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire 21/30 Armed Police officer looks through his weapon on London Bridge Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire 22/30 People run along Borough High Street Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire 23/30 Police at the scene on Southwark Bridge Carl Court/Getty Images 24/30 A paramedic rushes to the scene Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire 25/30 An armed officer on London Bridge Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire 26/30 A paramedic at the scene Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire 27/30 Armed police on Borough High Street Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire 28/30 Emergency personnel on London Bridge Yui Mok/PA Wire 29/30 Police officers outside the Barrowboy and Banker Public House on Borough High Street Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire 30/30 People are lead to safety away from London Bridge Carl Court/Getty Images

The special report on Islamist inspired extremism, airing tonight on BBC One, showed the undercover journalist used Twitter to make contact with jihadist and IS recruiter Junaid Hussain, from Birmingham.

Speaking through an encrypted messaging site, 21-year-old Hussain said he could help train the undercover reporter on how to make bombs from home.

When Hussain, from Birmingham, was killed by a US army drone in the Syrian city of Raqqa in 2015, another recruiter made contact with Inside Out's undercover reporter to continue the conversation. He detailed a plot to assassinate a police officer, including how to obtain firearms and bullets.

Inside Out London's undercover reporter said: "In July 2016, we discovered that the terrorist organisation was touting on Twitter and Facebook for British Muslims to stage attacks at specific London locations.

"We began conversing with one of their recruiters, who then invited us to chat privately on a secret messaging site. The authorities were fully aware of our contact with the terrorist organisation."

All three London Bridge attackers Khuram Butt, 27, Rachid Redouane, 30, and Youssef Zaghba, 22, were shot and killed by police at the scene.

It came as a separate poll, conducted by Inside Out, found 90 per cent of the 6,546 surveyed across England believe there will be more terror attacks.

When asked whether they feel more or less safe in public spaces compared with 12 months ago, 29 per cent of those surveyed said they feel less safe, and 10 per cent think that they, a family member or a good friend could be killed or wounded in a terrorist attack.

More than half of those surveyed, 52 per cent, believe the security services should be given more powers to tackle terrorism, even if that means individual privacy suffers.