We are living in an age of immersive digital connectivity where personal information is unjustifiably accessible online.
As a result, the threat of doxxing is an increasingly growing concern.
Doxxing is the act of maliciously publishing identifying or private information about an organization or person with nefarious purpose.
This has become part of the cyberbullying and harassment sector in the cyberworld.
In this article, we will discuss several disconcerting statistics surrounding doxxing and further spread awareness of its prevalence and impact on its victims.
If we want to mitigate and eventually end the practice of doxxing, we must first be aware of it and learn more about it.
This article will show how the instances of doxxing have been increasing in recent years and that younger adults are targeted and fall victim to this malicious practice.
Likewise, we will find it impacts a broad range of people from all walks of life and its pervasiveness.
Not only that, but we will discover its impact on victims that endure this kind of horrible act.
We understand that the following doxxing statistics may shock our readers because of the grim picture they paint in regard to this vicious practice.
In addition to statistics, we will also share some steps to take to protect yourself from becoming a victim to doxxing.
Let’s learn more about doxxing and how to mitigate its impact.
Key Statistics
- 43 million Americans have reported being doxxed.
- 90% of doxxed files analyzed include the target’s address.
- 13% of men and 21% of women have personally experienced doxxing.
- 52% of doxxing attacks result from online engagement with strangers.
- In the UK, doxxing is considered a criminal offense.
- In 2019, more than 1 out of every 10 secondary education aged students participated in doxxing.
- Doxxing is illegal in Australia and Germany.
Top Doxxing Statistics
1. 43 Million Americans Have Reported Being Doxxed.
Recent data revealed that 43 million Americans have reported being personally doxxed.
That account for 21% of the U.S. population.
Additionally, 62% said they knew someone that had been doxxed.
(SafeHome)
2. 90% of Doxxed Files Analyzed Include the Target’s Address.
A study from NYU in 2017 analyzed over 5,000 doxxing files and found 90% of those files included the victims’ physical addresses.
Another 61% of the files included phone numbers, and 53% included email addresses.
(Garbo)
3. In the UK, Doxxing Is Considered a Criminal Offense
Doxxing is a criminal offense in the United Kingdom.
It’s a law under the Computer Misuse and Data Protection Acts.
Anyone who is found engaging in doxxing activities can face fines, imprisonment, or both.
(Besedo)
4. In 2019, More than 1 out Of Every 10 Secondary Education Aged Students Participated in Doxxing.
Adolescents in a 2019 study accounted for 1 out of every 10 secondary education aged students who engaged in doxxing activities.
This data suggests that adolescents aged 10 to 19 participate in doxxing.
(NIH)
5. 52% of Doxxing Attacks Result from Online Engagement with Strangers.
Let’s face it, doxxing is an extremely personal attack.
Data from analyzed doxxing files showed that 52% of these attacks occurred from engaging with strangers in the online realm.
(SafeHome)
6. Doxxing Is Illegal in Australia.
The UK isn’t the only region where doxxing is specifically illegal.
It’s also illegal in Australia.
Doxxing is prosecuted in Australia under laws that prohibit unauthorized access to personal information (PI), harassment, or stalking.
Penalties include fines and imprisonment.
(Besedo)
7. 40% of Doxxing Victim’s Usernames Were Exposed to The Public.
According to the analyzed doxxing files from the study at NYU, 40% of doxxing victims’ usernames were made public. Furthermore, another 40% also exposed the victims’ IP addresses.
(Garbo)
8. Over 80% of US and EU Adolescents Have Social Media Accounts.
It’s relevant to understand that over 80% of the adolescents living in the United States and the European Union have their own personal social media accounts.
This makes them targets of doxxers and other nefarious characters.
(NIH)
9. 51% of Doxxers Face Criminal Charges.
More doxxing data revealed that 51% of people who engaged in doxxing face criminal charges.
These charges included repercussions under the criminal activities of identity theft and threats of violence.
Therefore, doxxing isn’t a victimless attack and is does more than negatively impact people’s reputations and emotional health.
(SafeHome)
10. The Act of Doxxing Is Illegal in Germany.
Another country that specifically made doxxing illegal is Germany.
Germany has extremely strict privacy laws in place that forbid the collecting and exposing of unauthorized personal information.
Like the UK and Australia, doxxers can face imprisonment and/or fines.
(Besedo)
11. Doxxing Files Showed that 8.8% Exposed Financial Information.
In terms of revealing personal information, the good news is that only 8.8% of the doxxing files analyzed at NYU showed financial information was exposed.
Moreover, 2.6% revealed Social Security numbers.
Even though percentages for financial and Social Security numbers are low, exposure of this data should be zero.
(Garbo)
12. 31% of Younger Adults Aged 18 to 29 Are Targeted by Doxxers.
In 2021, the Pew Research Center reported their findings related to online harassment, which translates to doxxing.
This data showed that 31% of adults aged 18 to 29 were targeted by doxxers.
This tells us that younger adults are the biggest doxxing targets.
(Pew Research Center)
13. 13% of Men and 21% of Women Have Personally Experienced Doxxing.
This data from Pew Research in 2021 revealed that 21% of women and 13% of men said they have personally experienced some form of doxxing.
This data suggests that women are targeted more often than men.
(Pew Research Center)
14. 25% of Doxxed Victims Experienced Severe Harassment.
Doxxing incidents range from minor to severe, but 25% of those impacted by doxxing said they experienced severe harassment.
These behaviors include harassment, threats of violence, and multiple attacks of cyber bullying.
(Pew Research Center)
15. 75% of Doxxing Victims Said They Felt Emotional Distress.
Just like cyberbullying, online harassment, and other forms of harassment involving doxxing, victims say they feel emotionally distressed after the event.
In fact, 75% of doxxing victims said they felt emotional distress.
The same source reported that 43% reported feeling physically threatened.
(Cyberbullying Research Center)
16. 66% of Doxxing Instances Are Reported to Authorities.
While some instances of harassment and cyberbullying are less often reported to authorities, 66% of doxxing attacks have been reported to authorities.
This seems like progress, but it leaves 34% of those who don’t report doxxing.
(SafeHome)
17. A Newsworthy Instance of Doxxing in Singapore Was Reported in September 2020.
Ms. Koh Boon Hui, a social media influencer from Singapore was accused of doxxing the men who allegedly sexually assaulted or harassed her friends or her in September 2020.
She was accused of exposing their full names and their National Registration Identity Card number on her Instagram account.
(Besedo)
18. 12% of Students in Hong Kong’s Secondary Schools Engaged in Doxing.
Research revealed that in Hong Kong, 12% of secondary school students admitted to doxxing. In this research, it was also found that more girls admitted to doxxing than boys.
Girls were more apt to engage in social doxxing, but boys were more apt to be hostile in their doxxing attacks.
(Garbo)
19. 73% of Those Victimized by Doxxing Changed Their Online Behavior.
While it shouldn’t take becoming a victim of doxxing to make the appropriate changes to online behaviors, that’s exactly what 73% of doxxing victims reported doing.
They did so by increasing their privacy settings and by limiting their social media activities.
(Cyberbullying Research Center)
20. In the US, the State of Nevada Passed a Bill Banning Doxxing.
While the United States itself has no specific laws against doxxing, it does prosecute doxxing when other illegal events occur due to doxxing.
However, at the state level, Nevada passed a bill in 2022 that bans doxxing specifically.
It allows victims to bring civil actions against their perpetrators.
(CBS)
FAQs
What Is Doxxing?
Doxxing is the act of gathering and publishing identifying or private information about an organization or person, usually with malicious intent.Â
The information gathered and published for doxxing can include but is not limited to full names, phone numbers, addresses, social media profiles, email addresses, and sometimes even financial information.
Why Do People Engage in Doxxing?
There’s no “good” answer as to why people perpetrate doxxing on others.
However, there are nefarious motivations like these:
• Intimidation
• Harassment
• Silencing opposing views
• Revenge
Overall, there are also goals involving why people dox others like these:
• To cause embarrassment.
• To instill fear.Â
• To do harm, which sometimes turns physically violent.
• To expose someone’s identity out of spite or vengeance.
As you can see, there is no “good” reason to dox someone.
There are only nefarious reasons.
How Do People Get Doxxed?
Doxxers commonly gather information from a variety of online sources like social media, public records, and data breaches.
It’s also not unusual for doxxers to engage in social engineering to attempt to get their targets to reveal personal information.
What Are Some Consequences of Doxxing?
Doxxing can cause serious consequences for victims.
Here are just a few things victims may experience:
• Emotional distress
• Damaged reputation
• Job loss
• Physical harm
• Harassment
• Threats
• Stalking
You may see similarities to cyberbullying in the doxxing realm because that’s what it is.
Is Doxxing Illegal?
The legalities of doxxing relies on the jurisdiction of the occurrence and the actions involved.
Doxxing itself isn’t illegal, but when it results in identity theft, violence, harassment, stalking, and other illegal activities, it is illegal.
Some doxxers tend to walk a delicate line on that front.
How Can You Protect Yourself from Getting Doxxed?
Here are some tips to protect yourself from doxxing:
• Be careful about the information you share online either in your profiles or posts.
• Use strong passwords with 12 or more characters and enable two-factor authentication which is available across almost all online accounts nowadays.
• Be mindful of the friend requests you accept on social media and do not open any messages from unknown senders.
• Regularly check your social media privacy settings and make the appropriate changes as needed for your privacy.
• Consider using a VPN to mask your IP address and protect your online activities.
What Should You Do if You’ve Been Doxxed?
If you believe you have been doxxed do this:
• Document the incident and include URLs and screenshots.
• Contact the platforms where you have stored information and request that it be removed.
• Report the event to law enforcement if you feel harassed or threatened.
• Consider seeking legal counsel to learn more about what you can do in recourse.
What Are Some Resources for Doxxing Victims?
We found some resources for you in case you get doxxed, which include:
• The Cyberbullying Research Center
• The National Network to End Domestic Violence
• The National Domestic Violence Hotline: 800-799-7233
• The VictimConnect Resource Center
Remember to contact the local authorities in your region of the world to get help quickly and to find more help.
How Can You Prevent Doxxing?
We all need to learn more about the prevention of doxxing.
Here are some ways to do that:
• Avoid sharing personal information about others without their consent.
• Report doxxing when you see them online.
• Promote awareness of doxxing and its consequences.
• Encourage responsible online behavior.
• Urge others to spread awareness of doxxing.
• Respect the privacy of others.
How Can We Address Doxxing on A Larger Scale?
To address doxxing on a larger scale, these things need to be done:
• Stronger legal frameworks to protect people from doxxing and related offenses.
• Increase awareness and educate others via campaigns about doxxing and its impact.Â
• Engage in enhanced security protocols across all online accounts and platforms.
• Collaborate efforts alongside law enforcement agencies, tech companies, and advocacy groups.
There’s always something we can all do to spread awareness and encourage others to follow suit.
Conclusion
What we can garner from these statistics is that doxxing is a widespread problem and is illegal in some areas of the world.
However, it’s not specifically illegal in the United States unless another criminal act is attached to it like an act of violence or other illegal acts in the nation.
Also, anyone can fall victim to doxxing, but it’s most common among younger adults and adolescents.
It’s a global problem that is addressed by only a few countries and online platforms.
You now have the data about doxxing and some ways to prevent it.
We hope we can all do our part to stamp out doxxing.
These doxxing statistics may have been difficult to read and realize, but we all need to know them and encourage awareness, education, and to prevent these attacks regardless of the level.
Sources
Written by Trevor Cooke
YOU MAY ALSO LIKE
