Bomb Threats Against Local Schools Could be Part of ‘Swatting’ Trend

Heart pounding, mind racing, and palms sweating- all things you'll experience when you get a call that no parent ever wants to receive from their child's school- that someone has threated to commit a violent act towards the student and the staff.

I experienced it last week when I received a recorded message from the superintendent of schools in Lake Geneva stating that a student had been planning a mass shooting on the last day of school. News traveled like rapid fire on Facebook and Twitter and while it was determined to be a hoax, a lot of parents, including myself, are leery of letting their child go to school this Friday.

But it turns out these threats against schools, especially the recent rise in bomb threats against schools across the country, are part of a "swatting" trend.

According to WIFR, "In recent months, hoaxers playing online games have allegedly used proxy servers and other high-tech identity-disguising tools to anonymously threaten schools online or in phone messages with electronic voices to trigger a huge police response, including SWAT teams."

Clinton-Rosette Middle School in DeKalb very well could have been a victim of this trend. Around noon on Monday, police were contacted about a bomb threat at the school; all students and staff were relocated and after an investigation by Kane County Sheriff's Department, nothing suspicious was found in the school.

Authorities are aware of the national threats against other schools but have yet to comment further on this incident.

Will this make you feel any better about potential future threats made against your child's school