The indictment implies the men then gleaned personal information such as addresses from 12 Ring accounts, and either placed false emergency reports or called local police to those locations, citing fake disturbances. Law enforcement was then dispatched to the unwitting Ring owners’ residences. This dangerous and even occasionally lethal prank is known as “swatting.” Atop the attacks’ logistical and legal consequences, the events can lead to lasting psychological trauma in victims, and have long been a favored form of hate crime harassment. As Ars Technica noted on Monday, it still remains unknown how the two men gained the login information. Regardless, Nelson and McCarty then live streamed the ensuing chaos via social media. In one instance cited within the US Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California’s announcement, the pair phoned a police department and posed as a child who claimed their parents were arguing and firing guns in the house following a drunken dispute. Once police arrived at the home, Nelson and McCarty utilized the compromised Ring system’s doorbell speakers to verbally abuse and taunt the responding officers. The weeklong swatting campaign gained the attention of national news outlets, prompting the FBI to issue a public service announcement urging owners of Ring and other similar smart home security systems to take additional safety measures. Simple habits such as enabling two-factor authentication and choosing complex, unique passwords alongside a password manager have consistently been shown to help deter bad actors attempting to compromise online accounts. If convicted, Nelson and McCarty could face multiple years in federal prison. Ars Technica also reports that a separate indictment was filed against McCarty in November in Arizona for swatting attacks on at least 18 people.
