who are these people that make death threats and how many of them do you think really mean it?

[bastardofmelbourne]

Who are they: any anynomous asshole who is adequately angry about anything.

How many: almost none. I don't think I've ever actually heard of any of these high-profile death threats made against Person X for holding Opinion Y being fulfilled in any way, shape, or form.

Based on my knowledge of actual prosecutions on the matter, "legitimate" death threats fall into a couple of categories:

- death threats from spouses, family members, and peers, because they're in reasonably close physical proximity and - more importantly - may know where you live, and;
- death threats from criminals, such as those used to intimidate witnesses, whistleblowers, informants and investigators.

If the person threatening to kill you isn't one of those, but is rather some anonymous asshole who doesn't like the new Ghostbusters trailer, you are perfectly fucking safe, don't freak out about it. You're more likely to get cleaned up by a car while walking down the street than you are to get murdered by someone who heard about you on the Internet.

 

[Thaluikhain]

Everyone keeps saying 99% have no intent to actually go through with the act, and while that may be true has there been a single example of a gaming critic/Youtube celebrity/games journalism person actually getting murdered by someone who sent them a death threat?

Those targets are nicely anonymous, though, you'd often not know what continent they were on, let alone where they lived.

Based on my knowledge of actual prosecutions on the matter, "legitimate" death threats fall into a couple of categories:

- death threats from spouses, family members, and peers, because they're in reasonably close physical proximity and - more importantly - may know where you live, and;
- death threats from criminals, such as those used to intimidate witnesses, whistleblowers, informants and investigators.

I'd add "ideological" to that. People that threaten people due to their religion, politics, working at abortion clinics, that sort of thing. A lot of that is just hot air, but people make a try of it every so often.

 

[RaikuFA]

It's why I won't play Overwatch. Or any MOBA or fighter. Not worth the doxxing I'd get for dumb reasons.

 

[Leg End]

They're typically just idiots who want to screw with people, but you still shouldn't brush it off.

I had a guy threaten me from an MMORPG I used to play, then he sent me a picture of my street sign and was talking about how he gets off watching the life go out of a girls eyes as he chokes them, so I sent him a picture of my Glock 40 with a gutted target and my 15 round clip with a box of hollow points sitting there and he left me alone, (luckily I found out later he actually went to jail too.)

You got a PO Box I can send a 50 round drum magazine to?

People get killed every day for nonsense, so you never know who is and who is not capable and honestly, it is not worth finding out or being wrong to second guess what is going to happen. If your wrong in this situation, you can pay with your life, so it is better to be safe than sorry and call authorities and make sure you take precautions if something like that happens. I am alive today because my neighbor got stabbed to save me. Some people DO mean it.

Jesus, hope your neighbor is alright and has no lasting damage. There are some sick people out there.

 

[Gorrath]

Had an ex threaten to kill me and bludgeon me with a cast iron skillet because I ended up pulling duty on base two weekends in a row. She decided that meant I was cheating. Had another guy threaten to kill me over an online RPG. He knew I was an avid collector of swords and knives and that I practiced and so he wanted to fight me in a sword duel. After he e-mailed me my own address, I e-mailed him back a picture of my bullet collection for my Taurus and called the cops. The delusional creep accused me of not being honorable for not fighting him to death in hand to hand combat. Crazy ass people man.

Other than that it's all been a lot of hot air. People say stupid shit anonymously constantly. I don't take online death threats seriously without some evidence that the person making the threat has some means and will to act on it. If there's a doubt call the cops.

 

[Pirate Of PC Master race]

I mean it's every time something happens thats remotely controversial.

Person did X thing, getting death threats.

I hear it enough to the point that it's almost cliche.

Most importantly, who the hell does it? What even counts as a death threat? How many of them do you need to get before they can run that headline?

Is it just people being angry and doing the whole "I wish I could hurt you" thing, where if you had the object of the hate tied to a chair and handed them a gun they'd puss out?

Well, maybe if a guy is convicted murderor, and have documents to prove it, I guess that will make internet death threats from him *somewhat* legitimate.

Otherwise they are effective as "LOL you mad bro?".

 

[Lil devils x_v1legacy]

I mean it's every time something happens thats remotely controversial.

Person did X thing, getting death threats.

I hear it enough to the point that it's almost cliche.

Most importantly, who the hell does it? What even counts as a death threat? How many of them do you need to get before they can run that headline?

Is it just people being angry and doing the whole "I wish I could hurt you" thing, where if you had the object of the hate tied to a chair and handed them a gun they'd puss out?

Well, maybe if a guy is convicted murderor, and have documents to prove it, I guess that will make internet death threats from him *somewhat* legitimate.

Otherwise they are effective as "LOL you mad bro?".

The thing is, if they are going to kill you they probably are not going to " show you documents" they are going to make their threat then heads are going to start coming off...

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/world/hyperviolent-drug-cartel-decaptiates-members-internet-chat-rooms-article-1.976359
You never know what the person you are talking to is capable of. Yes, you could have insulted a Zeta members' favorite song or just pissed off a guy who has bodies buried in his back yard.. you really never know. I usually tend to be nicer on the internet than in person because there is the delete function. You do not have the delete function when you are talking and something didn't come out right.

 

[Bocaj2000]

My guess is narcissists and the mentally ill. People who are so full of themselves that they think simple disagreement is punishable by death. Granted, I think that most of them are cowards but the ones who take it too far should be arrested.

 

[Worgen]

Everyone keeps saying 99% have no intent to actually go through with the act, and while that may be true has there been a single example of a gaming critic/Youtube celebrity/games journalism person actually getting murdered by someone who sent them a death threat?

Like it seems like 99% don't mean it, and 100% never do it.

Its happened a few times.

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/world/video-gamer-hunts-stabs-man-killed-online-counter-strike-character-article-1.447608

 

[Frankster]

Any time I pick up a competitive multiplayer game with the ability to message your opponents somehow , I get showered with death and rape threats

I really should have taken pictures of what my xbox live message center was like, even today I'm still taken back by how super nasty people can get because of the silliest reasons, usually me playing in a way they don't approve xD

Otherwise the worst is games with mics allowed, there's always a bunch of internet tough guys who have made the art of thrash talking into a mic wherever I seem to play, and maybe im just a sensitive soul, but having somewhat raging at you even if you know its for dumb reasons doesn't make me feel better.

Do I ever feel like these type of people mean what they say? Yeah I do, I genuinely believe some of these pricks would gladly start something if you happened to be within reach xD Fortunately that's rarely the case.

 

[Pirate Of PC Master race]

Everyone keeps saying 99% have no intent to actually go through with the act, and while that may be true has there been a single example of a gaming critic/Youtube celebrity/games journalism person actually getting murdered by someone who sent them a death threat?

Like it seems like 99% don't mean it, and 100% never do it.

Its happened a few times.

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/world/video-gamer-hunts-stabs-man-killed-online-counter-strike-character-article-1.447608

So out of millions of death threats (I assume we, as denizens of internet have received death threat at least once) it occurs one in few millon(who have received internet death threat). Why don't we all worry about more realistic threats, like getting struck by lightning?

 

[Worgen]

Everyone keeps saying 99% have no intent to actually go through with the act, and while that may be true has there been a single example of a gaming critic/Youtube celebrity/games journalism person actually getting murdered by someone who sent them a death threat?

Like it seems like 99% don't mean it, and 100% never do it.

Its happened a few times.

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/world/video-gamer-hunts-stabs-man-killed-online-counter-strike-character-article-1.447608

So out of millions of death threats (I assume we, as denizens of internet have received death threat at least once) it occurs one in few millon(who have received internet death threat). Why don't we all worry about more realistic threats, like getting struck by lightning?

He was saying he thought it was more like 100% of people who made death threads didn't carry them out. I'm just saying it has happened.

 

[Lil devils x_v1legacy]

Everyone keeps saying 99% have no intent to actually go through with the act, and while that may be true has there been a single example of a gaming critic/Youtube celebrity/games journalism person actually getting murdered by someone who sent them a death threat?

Like it seems like 99% don't mean it, and 100% never do it.

Its happened a few times.

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/world/video-gamer-hunts-stabs-man-killed-online-counter-strike-character-article-1.447608

So out of millions of death threats (I assume we, as denizens of internet have received death threat at least once) it occurs one in few millon(who have received internet death threat). Why don't we all worry about more realistic threats, like getting struck by lightning?

It happens far more often than you realize. Of course you could ignore it, but then again you could wind up dead because you ignored it. The guy from the MMOPRG I was playing that sent a picture of my street sign was actually arrested for assaulting a woman on the same game. I was also told the picture of that street sign he sent me, he took first hand from his phone and he showed others thinking it was funny, he had actually been staying in a hotel not far from me in Dallas that weekend but he actually lived in Indiana at the time and I have no idea if he came down here just to target me or if he was here for some other reason and just decided to target me while here, and tbh I don't want to know and I don't want to find out. I just want him to stay the hell away from me online and in person.
The thing with this is are you willing to live with the consequences of being wrong and misjudged the situation? Oh yea that is what you wont be doing.. you wont be alive if you are wrong in this situation.

 

[Wintermute_v1legacy]

I can't even understand why someone would dislike a video and write an essay on why they hate it and it's the worst thing ever, so I have no idea why anyone would make death/rape threats.

I don't think they mean it, the vast majority, anyway. Still, it makes for a very shitty environment and I have to wonder if this is something that's gotten worse over the years, because I remember using the internet in the late 90's/early 2000's, and it doesn't matter if it was some art community, a free to play korean MMORPG, FIFA 99 or random forums, I never saw this kind of shit. In general people were nicer. Hell, even the assholes were nicer. More open to criticism, discussions, maybe even insults, and things didn't turn violent over nothing.

Guess that's why I'm not interested in multiplayer games anymore, and when I am, I'll go straight to deathmatch mode, where no one cares if I suck at the game.

 

[Lil devils x_v1legacy]

They probably just want to do what they can to make someone suffer. A death threat is a pretty good way to go about that if you're not willing to go past words, and the internet makes it easy.

I'd guess it's a relatively small proportion.

But it's a problem that's made worse by the fact that they're rarely taken seriously, and I don't mean that everyone should be in a blind panic about it, but that people shouldn't be making them, they should be prosecuted (Depending on your state, it's often illegal), and it is a cowardly attempt at bullying and making people feel personally unsafe. It does not matter if they are unable, or unwilling to go through with the threat, the fact that it's levelled at all is an offense.

People should be a little more afraid to give them, they should be very worried about how people will react to it, and overwhelmingly, that's not the case. Threats shut down events, there were a string of threats aimed at Universities after a mass shooting last year. People get more upset about the reaction to those, than organisations making the necessary response to a threat, even one they don't think will eventuate.

If cops kicked in their door and arrested them for every online threat they made, you could be sure this would drastically reduce very quickly if people see there are actual consequences for doing so. But for that to happen, they have to actually enforce the existing laws in nations that have them and get more nations on board to create necessary laws and enforce them in their nations as well. They should treat online threats the same as they treat snail mail or phone threats, as it is just another way to communicate them.

If people know that cops will show up for them making threats, those that are not serious will greatly reduce quickly. I also think people need to realize they are far from "anonymous" on the internet. If you are logged into a game or site, you are not anonymous, and it is not difficult to track you unless you take extreme measures most would never be willing to do. If more people realized that, more people would not act as stupid online as they do.