By Leischen Stelter, managing editor of In Public Safety
CBS News reported that after the fatal shooting of a man by a LAPD police officer, someone posted the officer’s private information online including his home address, phone number, and other personal details including his child’s school location.
This practice of researching and broadcasting personally identifiable information about an individual is referred to as doxing (or doxxing) and is typically done with malicious intent. The information published can be anything from home addresses to vehicle identification to social media accounts. Once an individual has been exposed through doxing, they may be targeted for online harassment. Doxing is becoming enough of a concern that the FBI and the Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) have issued warnings to law enforcement and public officials.
Protecting Yourself And Your Family
American Military University (AMU) recently hosted a webinar on this topic as part of its Law Enforcement Webinar Series. Presenter James Deater, who spent more than 23-years as a Maryland State Trooper specializing in wiretaps and other forms of electronic investigation techniques, provided advice for how officers can protect themselves.
Full Story: When Officers Become the Target: How to Protect Yourself from Doxing
