• Patch Lady – 31 days of Paranoia – Day 21

    Posted on October 21, 2018 at 23:19 CDT by • Comment in the Forums

    Ever heard of swatting?  It’s when someone calls the police and tells them that something is happening that isn’t just to harass the person.   The police arrive at the door with sirens going and guns pulled thinking they are walking into a situation where someone is being hurt or robbed by someone or held at gunpoint.   It can often lead to horrible consequences.  Just the other day I heard of something that made me go… really?  Has it gone THAT far?

    You can now sign up in the Seattle area to be on a swatting list so that the Police know that should they get a call to the address that it may be a swatting event, and not just a normal incident.  So the police are now put on notice that an individual or business may be harassed.  At times the person harassed is involved in online gaming and the swatting is done to enable others to watch the harassment.  Other times Technology journalists like Brian Krebs have been swatted and harassed.

    Bottom line it’s a prank that isn’t funny one bit.  And it’s a bit sad that police departments have to set up programs to ensure people don’t get hurt.

    Doxing is another term that is a side effect of having so many databases and so many ways to post information.  Someone either researches or has access to private information and then posts that information to the web.  Often it can be phone numbers, or addresses or other private information that when the information is posted to a public venue, it can put the person at risk, or encourage harassment.  The best way to anticipate doxing is googling yourself and seeing what information you can find about you, your family members, phone numbers, addresses, and then attempt to lock the information down.  In some databases you can unsubscribe and ask that your information be removed.

    Technology can be used for good, but there are times like this that technology brings out the worst in people.

     

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