"Swatting"

[smoothoperator]

In the case of 911, you would not be able to provide false information to the 911 system by spoofing yoru CallerID. Calls are identified by a totally seprate method. You additionally cannot block your information by doing a *67 or other means of blocking CallerID.

Maybe they're spoofing ANI instead but somehow they're fooling the 911 dispatchers.

.

[Keith B]

In the case of 911, you would not be able to provide false information to the 911 system by spoofing yoru CallerID. Calls are identified by a totally seprate method. You additionally cannot block your information by doing a *67 or other means of blocking CallerID.

Maybe they're spoofing ANI instead but somehow they're fooling the 911 dispatchers.

.

They are not making 911 calls, they are 'texting' or sending an SMS message to the police and it appears to come from a different number. Totally different method. Pretty easy to spoof SMS.

[smoothoperator]

Thanks for the clarification. If they're kicking down doors based on text messages, which come from mobile phones and not land lines, it sounds like this problem falls squarely in the category of Operator Error.

[Thomas]

Thanks for the clarification. If they're kicking down doors based on text messages, which come from mobile phones and not land lines, it sounds like this problem falls squarely in the category of Operator Error.

Yo dawg, I saw a guy holding some people hostage at gun point in some house. Man, that's barely worth the time telling the 5-0 about. I'll just send them a text.

Makes perfect sense.

[Sangiovese]

Actually, the false information I was referring to was the content of the call/text, not the spoofed number (reporting an emergency situation when one does not exist).

Looking back on it, I think I jumped the tracks though, since most of the conversation had been about the caller ID/phone number spoofing side of the problem.

At any rate, it's good to know that the system is sophisticated enough to avoid the easy attempts at doing this - thanks for the info! But it is frightening as heck to know that people are finding a way to trick dispatchers into sending police into third party locations under the guise of an emergency that warrants guns drawn.

911 doesn't use Caller ID; it uses a totally different system. That's all I will say about that.

I don't think I said it does. I don't have a clue how it works, and I (usually) refrain from jumping into areas where I'm clueless :) (My wife may have a different opinion on that subject!)

I was just responding to the "not illegal unless there is intent to defraud" comment... and suggesting some of the many ways that it could be prosecuted.

I was just responding to your comment

You could most likely prove intent to defraud in the case of the fake 911 calls.

In the case of 911, you would not be able to provide false information to the 911 system by spoofing yoru CallerID. Calls are identified by a totally seprate method. You additionally cannot block your information by doing a *67 or other means of blocking CallerID.

[RoyGBiv]

Tragically, here's the story of a death related to giving false information to 911.
The 911 caller has been arrested and charged with involuntary manslaughter.

Pasadena, Calif., police arrested a 911 caller Wednesday accused of fabricating an armed robbery story that led to the death of a black college student.

Kendrec McDade, 19, was shot dead by police in the city's northwest district at around 11:00pm last Saturday, the Pasadena Star-News reported.

Police were dispatched to the scene after a man, identified as Oscar Carillo, called 911 and said he had been robbed by two armed men who stole his laptop and backpack as he was buying tacos.

Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/us/2012/03/29/11 ... latestnews" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[jimlongley]

Caller ID is, for the sake of simplification, essentially a text message sent between rings, and can be spoofed quite easily. ANI is a totally different animal entirely and cannot easily be spoofed.

[Dave2]

Tragically, here's the story of a death related to giving false information to 911.
The 911 caller has been arrested and charged with involuntary manslaughter.

Pasadena, Calif., police arrested a 911 caller Wednesday accused of fabricating an armed robbery story that led to the death of a black college student.

Kendrec McDade, 19, was shot dead by police in the city's northwest district at around 11:00pm last Saturday, the Pasadena Star-News reported.

Police were dispatched to the scene after a man, identified as Oscar Carillo, called 911 and said he had been robbed by two armed men who stole his laptop and backpack as he was buying tacos.

Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/us/2012/03/29/11 ... latestnews" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Why isn't it "premeditated voluntary manslaughter"?

[Ameer]

Why isn't it "premeditated voluntary manslaughter"?

I don't know about Kalistan but in Texas manslaughter means recklessly killing someone. If it was voluntary that suggests it was done knowingly instead of recklessly, which makes it murder instead of manslaughter. If it was premeditated that would be intentionally killing someone, which is also murder.