Here's Who Is Behind Terrifying AI-Enhanced 'Swatting' Spree At US Universities — As Experts Issue Dire Warning To Authorities

A cyber group known as "Purgatory" is behind a terrifying spree of AI-enhanced swatting calls on college campuses across the US, leaving authorities scrambling to catch up and prevent further incidents.

Between August 21st and August 25th, at least 10 universities were thrown into chaos after fake active shooter calls sent armed federal and local law enforcement agencies rushing to lockdown campuses, launching students into full-blown panic. The calls have since been linked to Purgatory, a group of cybercriminals who use AI tools to replicate sounds of screaming and gunfire while on the phone with local authorities, according to recent findings by the Center for Internet Security and Institute for Strategic Dialogue.

Purgatory, which primarily organizes on Telegram and Discord platforms, derives from a larger group known as "The Com," a loose cybercriminal network that engages in swatting, sextortion, and the distribution of child sex abuse material. The FBI issued an alert about The Com as recently as late July.

"Sometimes [the call's] are for a fee, other times it's to bring attention to themselves as a group so that they can get new clients or get others to join this affiliation, and help them do swatting," said John Cohen, the executive director for the Countering Hybrid Threats Program at the Center for Internet Security and a former Department of Homeland Security official. "Sometimes, quite frankly, it's because they enjoy the thrill of watching."

Hoaxers can pocket $95 for school swattings — an intentional, staged call to bring law enforcement to a nonexistent crime scene — since the spate of recent media coverage. The threats previously paid as little as $20, WIRED reported last month. A leader of the group claimed Purgatory has made $100,000 since the shooting spree began, the outlet said.

The fake calls began on August 21st, with reports of an active shooter at the University of Tennessee Chattanooga and Villanova University, triggering armed law enforcement responses and sending panicked students and parents fleeing during an orientation event. On August 24th, swatting calls linked to the group also took place at the University of South Carolina and UNC-Chapel Hill. Then, a whopping six swatting calls were placed on August 25th alone, targeting universities such as Iowa State, Kansas State, the University of Maine, and the University of Arkansas.

Matt Mills, the assistant police chief at the University of Arkansas Police Department, recalled to The Post how a swatting call about an active shooter at the school's Mullins Library threw the campus into mayhem that day. "We had the initial call come in, just before 12:30. The caller stated that he was in our library, which is Mullins Library, and that there was a guy with a gun in the room," he explained.

"A call went on for a couple of minutes toward the end of the call, our dispatcher could hear gunfire in the background," Mills continued. "Local, city, state, and federal authorities rushed to the scene — as students and staff across campus barricaded themselves in office buildings and classrooms. Over the next couple of hours, we received over 300 calls on our non-emergency lines and 38 911 calls from varying parties."

After sending officers to clear seven campus buildings, authorities determined the active shooter alert was a swatting call. "I mean, the first response is thankfully nobody was hurt," Mills said. "And then there's some frustration with the amount of resources that were deployed from at least 15 different agencies in our area, including federal agencies and state police."

When asked if he could understand why anyone would pay for or call in a swatting call, Mills said he couldn't compute a reason someone would do such a thing. "It doesn’t make any sense to me why somebody would pay to have this done to a campus, to a hospital, to be anywhere," he said.

The Threat: Swatting

Swatting is a form of harassment where an individual makes a false report of a crime or emergency to law enforcement, often using the intention to cause panic and disrupt the normal functioning of institutions. In recent years, swatting has become increasingly sophisticated, with groups like Purgatory using AI tools to simulate sounds of gunfire and screams while on the phone with local authorities.

The Consequences

Swatting can have severe consequences for individuals, including physical harm from law enforcement overreactions. "Swatting is never just 'benign' and can be highly dangerous," said John Cohen, the cybersecurity expert. "They're not just irritating. The intent may be, in some cases, to harass the recipients or cause a disruption — but they can be highly dangerous because there are instances where, when the swatting call comes in, the law enforcement organization is going to respond like it's an actual emergency."

The Tactics

Criminals and threat actors like those involved in Purgatory are evolving their tactics at internet speed. They use AI tools to simulate sounds of gunfire and screams while on the phone with local authorities, making it difficult for law enforcement to distinguish between real emergencies and hoaxes.

The Solution

Law enforcement officials need to evolve to detect possible hoax incidents in real-time. "We have to become much better at understanding how foreign intelligence services, terrorists, and criminals are using the power of the internet — and we need to adapt our investigative processes accordingly," said Cohen.

The Deterrent

Another tactic to deter members of Purgatory would be to "identify, arrest, and prosecute" members. However, this requires a certain level of technical capability. In recent months, law enforcement has made progress in identifying and prosecuting individuals involved in swatting operations.

The Future

The FBI told The Washington Post that it's investigating the incidents, and the agency is "seeing an increase in swatting events across the country, and we take potential hoax threats very seriously because they put innocent people at risk." When asked if the spree would continue, a leader under the name "Gores" told WIRED, "Yes. 2 months."