The US Department of Homeland Security has produced a document warning that the personal information of America's police officers is being leaked online.
According to the unclassified intelligence document obtained by The Associated Press, threat actors are searching for private or identifying information about cops serving in departments nationwide and publishing it online in a form of cyber-attack known as doxxing.
In the document, the DHS warns that the digital act of doxxing could engender actual physical violence perpetrated by "violent opportunists or domestic violent extremists" if information like officers' home addresses fell into malicious hands.
A further dire consequence of doxxing that the DHS said could happen is that law enforcement officials would be prevented from carrying out their duties.
Included in the document is the bombshell that numerous high-ranking police officials have already fallen victim to doxxing attacks that have seen their home addresses, email addresses, and phone numbers splashed across social media.
Top brass officers whose privacy has been compromised are serving in cities including Washington, Atlanta, Boston, and New York.
The DHS believes doxxing attacks on police officers are linked to the ongoing protests over police brutality triggered by the death of George Floyd.
The report states that “at least one of the police commissioners was targeted for his alleged support of the use of tear gas to disperse protests."
Police officers in cities across America have been placed in a difficult position, ordered to keep the peace as numerous peaceful demonstrations have been high-jacked by looters and violent extremists.
It seems that the excessive force used by a minority of cops has tarnished the reputation of America's entire law enforcement community, the majority of whom uphold their sworn oath to protect and serve the public.
Some protestors have cited Floyd's death as evidence of systemic racism in the police force. They may be surprised to learn that of the people shot to death by US police in between 2017 and June 2020, 1,398 were white, 755 were black, 542 were Hispanic, 133 were "other." The race of a further 588 people shot to death by American cops was unknown.