📖 Content moderation glossary
What is doxxing?
In short
Doxxing is the publication of a person's private or identifying information, such as home address, phone number, workplace or family details, without their consent, usually to intimidate or expose them to harassment.
Doxxing turns online hostility into a physical risk. It can be explicit, like posting an address, or indirect, like sharing a photo of someone's street with a 'nice house you have here'.
Example: during a heated debate under a local news article, a commenter posts the full name and workplace of another participant, with a call to 'go and tell him what we think'. The comment should be removed immediately and the case escalated.
Doxxing also involves personal data, so it raises GDPR issues for the organisation hosting it. Moderation rules should treat it as a priority category with immediate removal rather than hiding for later review. OpenModeration lets each client define such rules, and doubtful cases are handled by the OpenModeration team.