Purgatory: The Cyber Criminal Group Behind Campus Active Shooter Hoaxes

The Rise of Purgatory

• 🎯 A cyber criminal group known as Purgatory is allegedly behind a new trend of active shooter hoaxes on US college campuses.
• 💡 These false reports began on August 21st, with incidents reported at the University of Tennessee, Chattanooga, and Villanova University.
• ⚠️ The hoaxes are particularly terrifying as they occur amidst real active shooter events and during students' return to school.

Tactics and Challenges

• 📞 Purgatory uses voice over IP and other internet-based technologies to mask their location and identity, making calls appear local when they may originate overseas.
• 🤖 They leverage artificial intelligence and other capabilities to make their false reports sound highly realistic.
• 📍 A significant challenge for law enforcement is the group's ability to hide their location, with perpetrators potentially operating from outside the US.

Law Enforcement Response

• 🚨 The Center for Internet Security intelligence report links Purgatory to these swatting incidents, causing chaos and straining law enforcement resources.
• 🚫 The FBI has stated that knowingly providing false information to emergency services is a serious offense that puts innocent people at risk, but declined to comment specifically on Purgatory.
• 🕵️‍♀️ Investigations into such groups will likely involve techniques similar to those used in crimes against children, including introducing undercover operatives into online networks.

Perpetrator Profile

• 💻 Purgatory is described as a loosely affiliated group of individuals, likely young, ranging from teens to early 20s.
• 🌍 The potential for perpetrators to be located overseas adds complexity to prosecution due to jurisdictional limitations.
• 📈 A tactic employed by the group is to live stream the swatting events in real-time, aiming to gain an audience and amplify the impact.