"Rot in Hell" and Trash Thrown in Yard... Indiscriminate Doxxing

Following reports of a group sexual assault allegations at Cornell University, innocent citizens have become targets of online doxxing by netizens.

According to The Washington Post on the 10th (local time), a graduate student at the University of Pennsylvania suffered damages after his face and threatening messages such as "Rot in hell" were circulated online simply because he shared the same name with those pointed out as perpetrators.

A U.S. Marine Corps sergeant who shares the same name also suffered harassment, as his home address was mistakenly included in court documents, leading to his family being threatened and garbage and dog feces being dumped in their yard.

The sergeant's mother lamented, saying, "Our family was terrified," and added, "Even when we tried to explain the situation to people, we only received reactions that we were lying."

After realizing the error, the court switched the related documents to private and condemned such harassment as "reckless, careless, and ultimately dangerous internet vigilante justice."

The fallout also hit "Chi Phi," the fraternity to which the students pointed out as perpetrators belonged.

Photos of Chi Phi members were posted on a Facebook account along with a message stating, "It wasn't just 7 people. Another 50 knew what was happening and did nothing."

Even former members who had graduated before the incident and had no relation to it had their photos distributed, resulting in cases where they faced disadvantages such as suspension from universities or employers.

The victim, "Jane Doe" (a pseudonym given to the anonymous female victim), also received death threats, and armed police were dispatched to her home due to someone making a false report.

Professor Sarita Schoenebeck of the University of Michigan pointed out, "When people believe the justice system is failing to do its job, 'netizen investigators' run rampant," and added, "Doxxing itself lacks the fact-checking, safeguards, and accountability demanded by the legal system," noting that the damage could persist.

The professor stated that the damage inflicted on mistakenly targeted individuals can last long after errors are corrected, saying, "Once false information spreads, the corrected content is rarely delivered to as many people as the original claim."

(Photo: Getty Images Korea)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.