Teen serial swatter-for-hire busted, pleads guilty, could face 20 years

A teenager has pleaded guilty to calling in more than 375 fake threats to law enforcement, and now faces years in prison. Alan Filion, now 18, last week pleaded guilty to four counts of making interstate threats to injure another person. Each count could see Filion spend five years in prison. He will learn his fate when …

[LBJsPNS]

Good. The little bastard deserves to be up on attempted murder charges.

[Helcat]

375 counts of attempted murder.

But 5 years each for only the 4 offences... make that 1 year per offence for 375 offences... that'd be a real warning to all those out there who think 'Swatting' is just a prank.

[CountCadaver]

of course a cheaper solution might be

enforced hard labour in the community - digging ditches by hand, digging graves by hand, scrubbing the public lavatories and any other disgusting filthy and downright heinous tasks the state can find to make his existence effectively utter and total hell for several years full time on top of keeping a full time job

[Joe W]

Intersting...

"Google names top five online scams"

Now... how about those scams promoted by the advertising on youtube that I sometimes report on - which is then answered with "nah, conforms to our guidelines"? How about you clean up your ship? And... what I would actually want to write would get that comment removed by the moderatrix, so I won't write that. But I hope they have a nice friendship day. Both the ones at youtube promoting scams and the scammers.

[Jamie Jones]

Re: Intersting...

You mean the space heater that heats your house for pennies, that the energy companies don't want you to know about is not real?

Surely the little device to plug in that reduces your electricity bill by 50% which the electric companies don't want you to know about... that one is real?

And the wifi-box that speeds your internet up 10 times - that the internet companies don't want you to know about. (I detect a theme here)... that must be true!

Next you'll be saying the torch with an intensity so bright that the military want them banned (!) is fake too.

Oh well, if that's true, I'll just have to do with the "make money with Amazon" ads. Surely they are legit(!)

ARGGGH

They do my head in - and I've known people say "they can't be scams - youtube is a legitimate company",

Imagine if ITV or any other terrestrial channel broadcast ads like this - they'd be fried.

I have given up reporting these ads. You go through hoops, and then if you get a reply, it's that they will remove the ad if it's deemed a scam... So you end up doing their work for them.

Apparently, advertisements on the internet directed at the UK are regulated the same way as TV adverts (haha, I kid you not)

I think someone better remind the regulator of this fact:

https://www.asa.org.uk/news/how-we-regulate-online-ads.html

Ofcom wants to get involved too:

https://www.ofcom.org.uk/tv-radio-and-on-demand/advertising/regulation-of-advertising-on-vsp/#:~:text=Statement%3A%20The%20regulation%20of%20advertising%20on%20video%2Dsharing%20platforms,-TV%2C%20radio%20and&text=Since%201%20November%202020%2C%20new,%2Dsharing%20platforms%20(VSPs).

[IGotOut]

Re: Intersting...

Please don't get them banned yet.

I need to get my smart watch that's going to banned because it's so high tech. The one designed by a former member of a special ops team

[Mike_R]

Re: Intersting...

Might I recommend having a look at

http://someonewhocares.org/hosts/

Works for me...

[Jamie Jones]

Re: Intersting...

Thanks. I use a blocking DNS already, but it doesn't block youtube ads, so I'll have a look at converting that list to "unbound" zone format.

Cheers!

[hayzoos]

Re: D-Link: "...all should be retired immediately."

It is quite possibly a new form of planned obsolescence. 1. hide some vulnerabilities or leave in some found during testing. 2. have patches ready to apply during warranty period. 3. post-warranty, EOL, when new product is available, and profits need a boost; release a remaining vulnerability via dark channels. 4. FU to suckers still using those devices, EOL means no new patches, buy our new ones.

[Doctor Syntax]

Re: D-Link: "...all should be retired immediately."

EOL shouldn't just be for the device, it should be for the vendor.

[Yeti]

Re: D-Link: "...all should be retired immediately."

Or flash alternative firmware. I've been using it for years on my DNS-320. Looks like it's not developed anymore, though(?).

[Sandtitz]

Re: D-Link: "...all should be retired immediately."

"it's time to delink from D-Link."

It's always a perfect time to stop using D-Link, their products are fine if they don't have any sort of management interface or configurable options, like L2 switches. Or wifi antennae. And...that's it.

Nevertheless... that NAS-320 is from around 2010, and looking at reviews from back then it was available for around £70. Which is super cheap. There's a disconnection from reality if people really expect a 14-year-old consumer trinket to still receive any support from manufacturer specializing on cheap tat.

Looking at the D-Link NAS-320 support page, there is a GPL code download package from 2012, visible only if you select the HW Rev A model.

Users are likely better server by the Alt-F firmware someone already mentioned, maybe it's got less bugs.

[LBJsPNS]

Re: D-Link: "...all should be retired immediately."

Western Digital did the same thing with their EX2 NAS. "Oh, sorry, we can't possibly figure out to secure this old hardware, can we interest you in an EX2 Ultra? We super promise this time everything will be OK! In the mean time, disconnect your NAS from the network and don't even think about using the remote access!"

[Anonymous Coward]

Swatting wouldn't be such a threat if the police didn't escalate everything to life changing violence, which is why it's much more prevalent (and threatening) in the US.

The guy making the call is only partially at fault for the trauma of the people getting swatted; some responsibility should remain with the armed team of fighters that actually inflict the injuries.

[Irongut]

Do swatting attacks happen outside the USA at all?

In most of the UK you will struggle to find an armed policeman.

[James O'Shea]

Interesting

I quite agree that all of the affected D-Link devices should be retired ASAP... and replaced by devices from other vendors. And. e 'retire soon' list. Indeed, all D-Link devices not currently affected should be replaced by devices from other vendors. The other vendors should be told exactly why they made sales and explicitly notified that if they try what D-Link tried, they, too, will be replaced. And by 'other vendors,' I mean at least two other vendors. No monocultures. D-Link users worldwide should get together and start legal action against D-Link, together with having a word with local politicians regarding legislation. If possible, drive D-Link out of business.

Yes, I do have a negative attitude. Why do you ask?

[James O'Shea]

Re: Interesting

Feh. The sentence fragments "And. e 'retire soon' list" were supposed to have been deleted and replaced by deathless prose, which I can't remember anymore. Bah, humbug.

[Tubz]

New D-Link device, no thanks I prefer herpes. This company is an advertisement why EOL devices should have their code open sourced, they have your cash and care little for their consumer customers and a lot of their stuff is trash using open source code but give little back!