Twitter suspended several journalists’ accounts without warning or explanation: platform owner Elon Musk later revealed that journalists had doxxed him.
History and Definition:
Doxxing, also spelled as doxing, is a short form of ‘dropping dox’ or documents.
It is an illegal and often malicious practice where a person’s personal or identifying information is gathered and shared about them online without the knowledge or consent for the purpose of harassment, threat, shame, and retribution.
It is a popular method used against opposing political views, celebrities, and influencers.
Twitter has now launched a new policy that includes sharing the live location of any individual as a possible serious safety and security risk is not allowed at all. As this poses a security risk to a person’s life.
Sharing what information is considered as doxxing:
1. Home address or physical location information (including street address, GPS coordinates,s or other identifying information related to locations that are considered private)
2. Identity documents including government-issued Ids and social security or other national identity numbers.
3. Contact information including non-public personal phone numbers or email addresses.
4. Financial accounting information including bank account and credit card details.
5. Other private information including biometric data or medical records.
References:
https://byjus.com/free-ias-prep/upsc-exam-online-preparation/topic-of-the-day/
https://pixabay.com/illustrations/internet-computer-screen-monitor-1593448/
