School Districts Struggling to Cope with Rise of Social Media Threats Cybertraps 96
New substack: subscribe here. https://cybertraps.substack.com - Show Notes - Social media and digital communication threats are a rising problem - Every threat has to be taken seriously - Incredibly disruptive - Warning notices to parents – upsetting - Lockdowns - School closures / switch to remote learning - Myriad vectors - Email - Text messages - Social media apps - Snapchat - TikTok - Instagram - WhatsApp - Facebook - What Can Schools Do to Address the Problem? - Short-Term - Incident response plan - Assessment of severity of threat (err on side of caution) - Notification to the school community - Cooperation with law enforcement to identify source - Every incident is a teachable moment - Spiderman – “With great power comes great responsibility” - Long-Term - Role of parents - Cybersecurity measures - Monitoring of social media - Balancing resources and student privacy - Creating a culture of awareness among students and staff - Reluctance to get involved? - Concern about being a “snitch” - Relationship with law enforcement, including FBI - Investigations - Selfie-incrimination - Mistaken belief in anonymity - Digital investigations - Computer forensics - Penalties are serious - Resources - #2021–11–12 Photos from Oregon students’ social media pages taken, uploaded on site with ‘highly inappropriate content,’ district says “https://www.channel3000.com/photos-from-oregon-students-social-media-pages-taken-uploaded-on-site-with-highly-inappropriate-content-district-says/” - #2021–11–12 Ossining High School switches to full remote learning following social media threat “https://bronx.news12.com/ossining-high-school-switches-to-full-remote-learning-following-social-media-threat” - #2021–11–11 Hopewell superintendent addresses next steps after guns found in schools, social media threat “https://www.nbc12.com/2021/11/11/hopewell-superintendent-addresses-next-steps-after-guns-found-schools-social-media-threat/” - #2021–11–11 Maine East High School student facing charges for alleged threats, ‘hateful’ comments on social media “https://www.chicagotribune.com/suburbs/park-ridge/ct-prh-social-media-threats-tl–1118–20211111–7wwpot6yofc3hkpobh7mdytvcu-story.html” - #2021–11–10 Helena schools, police prepared as social media threats target schools across the country “https://www.ktvh.com/news/helena-schools-police-prepared-as-social-media-threats-target-schools-across-the-country” - #2021–11–10 1 person arrested after social media threat made against Braden River High School “https://www.mysuncoast.com/2021/11/10/1-person-arrested-after-social-media-threat-made-against-braden-river-high-school/” - #2021–11–03 Parents Panic over unfounded social media rumor of planned Florence school shooting “https://wpde.com/news/local/parents-panic-over-unfounded-social-media-rumor-of-planned-florence-school-shooting” - #2021–11–01 Sheriff: No threat to schools from vague social media post “https://www.ksby.com/news/local-news/sheriff-no-threat-to-schools-from-vague-social-media-post” - #2021–10–29 Social media trend leads to threats made at NorCal schools “https://www.kcra.com/article/norcal-schools-social-media-trend-threats-made/38099339” - #2021–10–25 Nationwide social media threat warning of school shootings hit several CNY districts; police say it’s not credible “https://www.syracuse.com/schools/2021/10/nationwide-social-media-threat-warning-of-school-shootings-hit-several-cny-districts-police-say-its-not-credible.html” - #2021–10–27 3 Savannah GA schools locked down after social media threat “https://www.savannahnow.com/story/news/2021/10/27/savannah-chatham-georgia-schools-lockdown-social-media-threat/8564651002/” - #2021–10–18 Four students at Peachtree Ridge High School facing charges after threatening social media posts “cbs46.com](https://www.cbs46.com/news/four-students-at-peachtree-ridge-high-school-facing-charges-after-threatening-social-media-posts/article_24336e66–3033–11ec-aede–97973c7b12ee.html” - #2021–11–01 Deputies: Juvenile responsible for social media threats against Colleton Co. schools taken into custody “https://www.live5news.com/2021/11/01/2-colleton-county-schools-lockdown-after-weekend-threat-social-media/”
