FBI creates national database to prevent ‘swatting’

Swatting is real. It has already caused multiple deaths. Here’s all you need to know about the smart crime that has compelled the FBI to start taking formal measures, such as creating a database, to get a comprehensive idea of the problem on a national level.

Business owner Niki Robinson and her husband, author Patrick Tomlinson, have been “swatted” at their residence more than 40 times, with a number of cases resulting in guns getting pointed at their heads by the police. Law enforcement has been unable to stop the calls.

Just Casual Remarks Give Online Trolls A New Prey

Their struggle with false calls started when Tomlinson took to Twitter in 2018 to post a casual remark saying he had never personally found the comedian Norm Macdonald very funny. The tweet soon grabbed the attention of online trolls, leading to a series of problems for the family.

The trolls soon started to stalk, harass, impersonate and defame the couple using social media accounts and a website of their own. The website has cloned elsewhere, helping the harassers to migrate rapidly if ever a service provider bans their forum.

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Swatters have even called in false bomb threats to venues using their names. The couple says they have made substantial investments in the past five years to protect themselves. They said they have bought personal defence weapons and home security systems, among other items.

FBI Trying To Get A Comprehensive Picture On National Level

Tomlinson and his family aren’t the only ones in the US getting harassed by the swatters. These incidents appear to be on the rise in the country, at least on college campuses. Several universities were targeted by the harassers in less than a single week in April.

To get a comprehensive idea, the FBI has created a national online database to facilitate information sharing between hundreds of police departments and law enforcement agencies. This effort is expected to generate a common operating picture of what’s happening in the US.

Technology Making Swatters’ Work Easier

According to security expert Lauren R. Shapiro, who works at John Jay College of Criminal Justice, ‘swatting’ refers to the practice of making fraudulent 911 calls to alert the police about serious-level criminal threats and cause them to raid the house of somebody who’s not involved.

Swatting is known to have deadly consequences. The practice has become increasingly popular as technology allows people to mask their real voice, phone number or IP address while making the call. Unfortunately, there is still no specific law criminalising swatting in the country.