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    Seattle PD registry opens for residents worried about 'swatting'

    by 
    Richard Lawler
    Richard Lawler
    10.02.2018

    The practice of 'swatting' has increasingly become a part of online harassment, and now the Seattle Police Department formalized a proactive measure for residents who think they might be a target. It published a PSA for the project showing bodycam footage of officers responding to a call that turned out to be a swatting "prank" where a caller claimed he was holding five hostages and would kill them if he didn't get $5,000. When police rushed to the location, they found only a young woman and a cat. For people like live streamers who may be targets, the PD is using its arrangement with a company called Rave Facility. It already used their tech to create a "Smart 911" profile residents could fill out to give responders a heads up about being hearing impaired, having pets or a medical condition to be concerned about. This next step contains a flag for registering swatting concerns about a particular location.