social media investigations Archives

The Growing Threat of Online Harassment

Online harassment has become a significant issue in today’s digital age, affecting people across various platforms and communities. According to Pew Research, 41% of Americans have personally experienced some form of online harassment. The study was published in 2021, although I am sure that number has increased over the last few years. Online harassment refers to abusive behavior conducted through digital platforms with the intent to harm, intimidate, or otherwise distress an individual or group. It encompasses a wide range of harmful activities facilitated by the internet, including social media, messaging apps, forums, and other online communication tools.

Types of Online Harassment

Online harassment can take many forms, each with its own methods and impact. Here are the main types of online harassment:

1. Cyberbullying

Definition: Repeated, deliberate harm inflicted through electronic means.
Examples: Sending threatening messages, spreading rumors online, posting hurtful comments or images.

2. Trolling

Definition: Intentionally provoking or upsetting people online to elicit emotional responses.
Examples: Posting inflammatory comments in forums, making offensive jokes, or derailing conversations with disruptive remarks.

3. Doxxing

Definition: Publishing private or identifying information about an individual without their consent.
Examples: Sharing someone’s home address, phone number, or personal photographs.

4. Swatting

Definition: Making false reports to emergency services to have them dispatched to someone’s address.
Examples: Reporting a fake hostage situation or bomb threat, leading to police SWAT teams being sent to the victim’s home.

5. Hate Speech

Definition: Online communication that demeans individuals or groups based on attributes like race, religion, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, or disability.
Examples: Racist slurs, anti-Semitic comments, sexist remarks, and homophobic language.

6. Sexual Harassment

Definition: Unwanted sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical harassment of a sexual nature.
Examples: Sending unsolicited explicit images, making sexually suggestive comments, or stalking someone online.

7. Impersonation

Definition: Pretending to be someone else online to deceive others.
Examples: Creating fake profiles, sending messages under another person’s name, or posting as someone else to damage their reputation.

8. Cyberstalking

Definition: The use of the internet or other electronic means to stalk or harass an individual, group, or organization.
Examples: Repeatedly sending threatening emails, monitoring someone’s online activities, or using social media to track someone’s whereabouts.

9. Flaming

Definition: Posting hostile and insulting messages online, often in forums or social media platforms.
Examples: Aggressive and heated arguments, personal attacks, or profanity-laden tirades.

10. Catfishing

Definition: Creating a fake online persona to deceive others, typically for romantic or financial gain.
Examples: Pretending to be someone else on dating sites, forming online relationships under false pretenses, or soliciting money under a false identity.

11. Mobbing

Definition: Collective harassment by a group targeting an individual.
Examples: Coordinated attacks or campaigns against someone on social media, mass reporting of someone’s account to get them banned.

12. Outing

Definition: Publicly revealing someone’s private, sensitive, or embarrassing information without their consent.
Examples: Disclosing someone’s sexual orientation, sharing private messages or images, or revealing someone’s medical condition.

13. Online Shaming

Definition: Publicly humiliating someone online for their behavior or actions.
Examples: Viral posts calling out someone’s behavior, mass sharing of embarrassing videos, or targeted hashtag campaigns.

14. Gaslighting

Definition: Manipulating someone by psychological means into questioning their own sanity.
Examples: Denying previous online interactions, altering messages or posts to make someone doubt their memory, or spreading false information to discredit someone.

Understanding these various forms of online harassment is crucial for recognizing and combating them effectively.

The first place to start is to document everything should this happen to you or to a client of yours. Hire us to do a deep dive. Even the most skilled at this can mess up and it sometimes is found in the smallest little detail. We can help!

Social Media & Behavior Analysis

Photo: medium.com

One of the most fascinating aspects of social media for me has always been the psychological angle or behavioral science to it all. Behavioral science is a field that analyses human behavior. It focuses on observing, describing, explaining, predicting, and modifying behavior through systematic observation and manipulation of environmental variables. This can be applied to social media in various ways. Marketers have been doing it for years~ profiling users of social media to better advertise their products or services. In fact, social media can even be used to better understand population dietary behaviors. The review identified 34 studies involving social media analysis (SMA). They took a deep dive on alcohol consumption, dieting and eating away from home behaviors. Twitter was predominant with data sets in tens of millions.

This is nothing new for OSINT researchers, Investigative Journalists, Law Enforcement, and Private Investigators. We have learned just how much you can discover through various platforms from finding a missing child to uncovering financial fraud and everything in between.

We like to start off by examining the age of the person and which platforms they are more likely to be on.

Demographics of Platforms: AGE

The recent data from Pew Research may suggest we should pay closer attention to certain social media platforms based on age. YouTube and Facebook still remain the top two most used platforms across all demographics. This data is a good place to start and may help to uncover different usernames that can later be used to identify other platforms.

Understanding User Behavior

Behavior analysis can be used to study how individuals interact with social media platforms. Researchers can observe and analyze user behavior patterns, such as the frequency of posting, types of content shared, and interactions with others (e.g., likes, comments, shares). How much influence does the user have? Which friends or followers seem to interact with the user the most? In what capacity?

Clues in a Post

Location: Posts may contain information about a person’s location, such as check-ins or geotags, which can be used to verify alibis or track movements.
Relationships: Posts may reveal a person’s relationships with others, such as friends, family, or acquaintances, which can be used to identify potential suspects or witnesses.
Activities: Posts may provide information about a person’s activities, such as hobbies, interests, or daily routines, which can be used to establish patterns of behavior or gather evidence of illegal activities.
Emotions: Posts may reveal a person’s emotions, such as anger, sadness, or happiness, which can be used to assess their mental state and motivations.
Communications: Posts may contain messages, comments, or other communications with others, which can be used to identify potential witnesses or suspects, and to gather evidence of criminal activities.

Body Language

Technically, body language refers to the nonverbal signals that we convey through our physical movements and gestures, which are typically seen in person. However, in social media videos, you can still convey nonverbal cues through your facial expressions, tone of voice, and posture.

For example, facial expressions can show enthusiasm or sadness, change the tone of your voice will convey different emotions, and gestures may be used to emphasize certain points. Voice inflections can be a sign of stress or anxiety.

Studying a social media post’s background can be very telling as well. For example, a cluttered or messy background may communicate disorganization or lack of attention to detail, while a professional or clean background may communicate professionalism and attention to detail.

Social media posts can provide valuable clues in an investigation, as they can reveal a person’s thoughts, emotions, activities, and connections with others.

There are and will continue to be a wide range of reasons to pay close attention to social media for an investigation of any kind.

Cultural Intelligence & Social Media

In the world of OSINT and Social Media, Cultural Intelligence is the understanding of the role culture plays in your subject’s day to day life. It can play a part in their interests, hobbies, word choices, religion, work, etc.. For instance, social media posts might include specialized language that becomes understandable only when we possess sufficient knowledge about the culture, enabling us to recognize distinctive word choices, iconology, or symbols.

A few years back we wrote, “The Role Culture Plays in Social Media Research” which provided some real life examples of how different cultures use language. During a recent search, our Senior Spanish Analyst uncovered a post that would lead the average person to think this individual was talking about her son. She called our person of interest her “Mijo” or “Hijo“ translated literally to mean son. Upon further investigation, our analyst knew from other data resources, that this woman was not his mother. It did indicate; however, she was a fan of his. Someone whom this woman held dear. The word son in Spanish can be used as a term of endearment or for someone you feel affection for.

Self-Promotion vs. Humility:

In some Western cultures, self-promotion is common, and individuals may openly share their achievements and successes on social media.
In certain Asian cultures, humility is valued more, and individuals may be more reserved in showcasing personal accomplishments to avoid appearing boastful.

Use of Emoticons and Emoji:

Different cultures may interpret emoticons and emojis differently. For example, a smiley face may convey happiness in one culture but could be perceived as insincere or sarcastic in another.

**LEaF Translations

Hashtag Usage:

The use of hashtags varies across cultures. While some cultures may embrace and create trending hashtags for various causes, others may not use them as frequently or may have different conventions for their use.

Personal vs. Professional Branding:

Cultural norms influence the balance between personal and professional content. In some cultures, people may seamlessly integrate personal and professional aspects of their lives on social media, while others maintain a clear distinction.

Frequency and Timing of Posts:

Cultural expectations regarding the frequency and timing of social media posts can differ. Some cultures may value regular updates, while others may prefer more selective and thoughtful sharing.

Response to Conflict:

Cultural norms play a role in how individuals respond to conflicts or disagreements on social media. Some cultures may prioritize maintaining harmony and avoid public confrontations, while others may engage in more direct debates.

Privacy Settings and Sharing:

Attitudes towards privacy impact how individuals configure their privacy settings. Some cultures may be more comfortable with public profiles, while others prefer stricter privacy controls.

Visual Content Preferences:

Cultural aesthetics influence the types of visual content shared. For instance, certain cultures may appreciate minimalist and clean designs, while others may prefer more vibrant and intricate visuals.

Community Building:

Cultural values shape the formation and participation in online communities. Some cultures may place a strong emphasis on building supportive and inclusive communities, while others may focus more on individual expression.

Language and Multilingualism:

Multilingualism is common on social media, and cultural context affects language use. Some cultures may use a mix of languages in their posts, reflecting the diversity within their community.

These examples highlight the diverse ways in which cultural differences manifest on social media platforms, influencing user behavior, content creation, and interaction styles. This is helpful when investigating a person of interest which may lead to critical information regarding your case.

“Sis, is this your Man?”

Dive into the unpredictable world of modern romance, where the once alluring dating pool has morphed into a chaotic dance of disappointment. Pose the question to any of your single friends about their dating escapades, and you’ll likely be greeted with a disheartening grunt or a groan that echoes the struggles of love in today’s world.

Picture this battlefield called love, where tales unfold like a riveting saga interwoven with the pitfalls of dating apps, cringe-worthy matches, and the spine-tingling phenomenon of ghosting. It’s not just a casual dip into the dating scene; it’s a full-blown immersion into a realm where emotions run wild, and the pursuit of genuine connection feels like an epic quest.

To make matters worse, dating apps are a breeding ground for cheaters. Not only do you as a single individual have to navigate through finding a potential love connection, you have to be safe in doing so. There is always the potential that someone is impersonating who they say they are.

Once a Cheater…

Jana Hocking, a columnist for the NY post and other publications, shared her experience in a recent NY Post article. As many do through dating applications, Hocking matched with a man who stated he was from the UK. His name was Sebastian, “Seabass” for short. One thing led to another and Sebastian added her to his Whatsapp account. Quickly Hocking noticed he placed a privacy setting on their chat, erasing all messages between them. “Why would he need his messages to be wiped? Hocking thought, “My spidey senses began to alert me that something wasn’t quite right.” From there, Hocking went onto a Facebook Group she is apart of called “Sis, is this your Man?”, looking for any clues on the man she matched with. Upon further digging she discovered the site FaceCheckID, and decided to place the dates photograph into the site. To her dismay, Sebastian really wasn’t who he said he was, in fact, his name was entirely different. An Instagram pulled up on the subject, called Robert, with a lovely photo of his wife and children.

Online Research Tips

Identifying a cheater can feel like an impossible task. Especially when dating apps themselves feel like the wild west. When someone wants to remain completely hidden, more than likely they will, but there is always, always that chance they mess up or are noticeable. Here are a few helpful tips from our expert analysts when conducting your own personal search on a cheater.

Facebook Groups- There are countless Facebook Groups nationwide and within your area, that have been created for the sole purpose of exposing cheaters. Hop onto your Facebook page, and start to search for groups that are local to you or even those in different states, depending on the circumstances of your case.

Some common Facebook Group Titles are:

“Do We Have the Same Boyfriend?”

“Does Anyone Know Who This Is”

“Sis, Is This your Man?”

“Cheaters Group”

“Are We Dating the Same Person?”

Social Media Deep Dive- You never know what is truly out there on an individual until you take the time to really search it out. We always recommend taking time to identify an individuals social media and online presence. It takes but one tiny detail identified to elevate your findings and case.
Conversation Apps-WhatsApp is a fantastic application to identify related to your subject. Depending on a person of interests app settings, sometimes other apps they are connected to can be shown through their profile. We have seen a few times where a Tinder or Bumble account is pulled up on an individual, simply by checking if they has a WhatsApp account.
Cash Apps- Depending on the privacy settings an individual has set through certain Cash applications, this can be another way to identify who your person of interest may be hanging around or with.
Dating Apps- Dive into the dating applications that are out there. Here are a few apps cheaters could easily sign up for and choose: Badoo, Tinder, Ashley Maddison, Bumble, Lovoo.
Secret Mesaging Apps- Does your client have access to the said cheaters phone? There are several secret messaging apps that they could identify such as Calculator Pro+, Hide My Text, Hago, Plato, Yubo, AmongChat.

We have countless requests from Private Investigators and Attorneys, from their clients, requesting information on if their partner or spouse is cheating. At E-Chatter our robust software, OSINT skills, and knowledgeable analysts all work together to identify cheaters.

From Posts to Paychecks: The Influence of Social Media in the Workplace

In today’s hyperconnected world, social media applications have become the go-to space for people to share their thoughts, feelings, opinions and experiences. While social media has endless benefits, such as staying connected with friends, family and the world at large, the boundaries between personal and professional life have never been blurrier. It is well known to some, but sadly not all, that what you share on social media can have a profound impact on your career and personal reputation. It’s a double-edged sword, a powerful tool for self-expression and networking, but one that can also be a slippery slope, potentially costing you your job and damaging your reputation in the blink of an eye. There are many ways, within the intricate web of social media, you can experience real-world consequences of the content you choose to share.

Current Events

First of all it has to be taken into account that the world is currently under a considerable amount of stress. Natural disasters have resulted in loss of lives, widespread destruction, and escalated tensions among nations and individuals. At this very moment, we are watching an unfolding conflict between Israel and Hamas, prompting people from all around the globe to express their thoughts, feelings, emotions, and political stances on social media regarding this complex issue. This war has ignited powerful sentiments worldwide, with many taking sides in this particular conflict.

The Associated Press (AP) recently found themselves in a predicament when one of their reporters, stationed in Gaza, was discovered to have a long history of publicly condemning Israel as an oppressive, apartheid regime. This raised concerns about the reporter’s ability to provide objective coverage of this conflict. A deep examination of the reporter’s X profile (Twitter) uncovered multiple tweets dating back to 2019, reinforcing the perceptions that his views on Israel were deeply rooted.

As a result, AP has taken the steps of relieving the reporter from his duties and is actively investigating his social media history. Interestingly enough, this is not the first time such an incident has occurred at AP. In 2021, the organization hired and subsequently fired a Stanford graduate who had previously posted anti-Israel content on social media. The question is, did either of these employees ever wonder if what they shared on their social media would be reviewed by their employer?

Recent data from T he Harris Poll revealed that a significant 71% of hiring decision makers concur on the effectiveness of scrutinizing candidates’ social media profiles as a screening tool. This statistic underscores a proud shift in the way our society approaches hiring practices. Social media’s influence has grown to such an extent that your resume is no longer the sole focus during the application process.

DeeAnn Sims-Knight, the visionary founder of Dark Horse PR, aptly captures this evolving landscape: “Because we tend to view our personal social media accounts as being “personal”, there’s a good chance that by viewing someone’s profile, you’ll get a glimpse into their personality beyond their resume.”

In this digital age, where our online presence can be as impactful as our real-world identity, it has become increasingly vital for job seekers and professionals alike to carefully curate their digital footprint. Your online presence isn’t just an extension of your resume; it’s an essential part of your professional identity.

Over the course of our seven years in business at E-CHATTER, we have seen first hand human behavior through social media and the role it plays in the workplace. According to Zippia, 98% of workers have social media for their own personal use. Alongside that statistic, 77% of workers report using and engaging with social media at work. It is not uncommon for employees to exhibit patterns and tendencies when sharing content online throughout their day. Many individuals are drawn to sharing an abundance of personal information. According to Harry Denley, a hacker and Security and Anti-Phishing at MyCrypo, said: “Most people are very verbose about what they share online. You can find virtually anything…”

People Magazine shared some truly astonishing testimonies of individuals who either experienced firsthand or witnessed the repercussions of their online activities. One particularly shocking case involved a nurse who shared posts to her Facebook such as, “Soooooo sleepy here in the ICU. Will someone please code and give me something exciting to do? #isthatbad?” alongside racist comments. What made this even more astonishing was that the nurse had tagged her posts with the location of the hospital where she worked.

Another example within the article showcased a co-worker who was dismissed from their job for indulging in marijuana and alcohol during work hours and proudly shared photos of these activities to social media. Unsurprisingly, their boss discovered the incriminating posts and promptly terminated the employee.

One of the most ironic stories shared of them all was the tale of a firefighter who was let go from his position after leaving work multiple times for an “emergency”. He was later caught sharing images to social media of him swimming in a pool and riding quads posting, “sometimes you just need to F-off from work”.

To comprehend this tendency, we must consider the unique dynamics of social media. Many perceive it as an outlet where they can shout into the void, assuming their posts will go unnoticed or that their identity will remain concealed. Sharing on social media offers a buffer period between the confession and the consequences, completely removing the power of face-to-face interactions. More than anything, most underlying reasons for oversharing on social media have to do with chasing clout or those “15 minutes of fame”. It can alleviate feelings of isolation, connecting individuals with like-minded people who empathize with their experiences.

With these insights in mind, E-CHATTER approaches online investigations with the understanding that there is a high likelihood that someone, at some point, may have inadvertently shared crucial information. Let’s consider a few real-life stories that vividly illustrate the unforeseen consequences of thoughtless digital actions.

While some individuals face termination in the workplace due to their current posts or comments, others may be terminated based on their social media history. Depending on the company’s policies, your social media past can hold as much significance as the posts made during your tenure. E-CHATTER has taken on cases that involved scrutinizing individuals due to discrepancies in their work history as listed on their resume. In one notable instance, an individual asserted that they had long-term employment with some of the most prestigious companies and organizations in their industry, a claim that didn’t stand up to analysis.

As our investigation unfolded it became evident that this individual was operating online under a different name. They were actively hosting a podcast that delved into their life, exposing a trail of admissions related to drug use and inappropriate content. This revelation proved to be a potential catastrophe averted for the employer, underscoring the importance of thorough background checks and the observance of a potential hire’s digital footprint.

In conclusion, the ever-expanding digital landscape has significantly altered the way we perceive and interact with the professional world. Employers must recognize the importance of closely monitoring their employees’ and potential hires’ online presence, especially in relation to sensitive topics such as race, sex, and discrimination. By proactively addressing and mitigating any harmful or inappropriate online content, businesses can not only safeguard their own reputation but also foster a more inclusive and respectful work environment. In today’s interconnected society, the boundary between one’s personal and professional life has become increasingly blurred, making it imperative for employers to adapt to these new realities and take a proactive stance in promoting a workplace culture that upholds respect, diversity, and equality for all.