What is 'Purgatory,' an online group that undertakes extremely cheap threatening phone calls such as false gun shooting reports and bomb threats?



In late August 2025, a series of

swatting attacks occurred at universities across the United States, in which false reports of a mass shooting were made to dispatch police officers and special forces. It has been reported that behind this series of swatting attacks is an online group called 'Purgatory,' which undertakes low-cost threatening phone calls.

Bomb hoax clears Vassar College dormitory in Poughkeepsie
https://www.nydailynews.com/2025/08/29/vassar-college-bomb-threat-hoax/



Online group 'Purgatory' behind wave of fake shooter threats at universities: Report
https://www.newsnationnow.com/crime/purgatory-group-active-shooter-hoaxes/

On August 21, 2025, reports of mass shootings were received at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga and Villanova University in the United States. Students at both universities were gathering to celebrate the start of the new semester, and students panicked when the universities and police warned of a mass shooting.

In the video below, you can see Villanova University students being evacuated.



However, within hours, it was discovered that all of these calls were false. Since then, similar swatting incidents have been confirmed at at least 20 universities, including the University of Colorado, Texas Tech University, and the University of Georgia. At Vassar College, the caller reportedly did not report a shooting, but a bomb threat claiming to have planted a bomb on the building.

After analyzing the tactics and techniques used in the swatting, analysts concluded that almost all of the attacks were carried out by a single group, reportedly an online group operating under the name 'Purgatory.'

'Purgatory is a loosely-linked group of individuals engaged in swatting, attacks on schools, and targeting various locations across the United States,' said John Cohen of the Center for Internet Security (CIS) , a nonprofit organization focused on strengthening internet security. 'CIS analysts have assessed that most of this activity is being carried out by a single group, and that group is Purgatory.'



Purgatory uses internet-based technology and commercial services to conceal their identities and locations while playing realistic background noises and gunfire during their calls, and frequently live-streams their calls to recruit new members and new jobs.

'Direct references to libraries were found to be common to the majority of these calls, and simulated gunfire could be heard in the background in many of the calls. The callers were using certain commercial internet voice capabilities,' Cohen explained.

According to Cohen, the perpetrators of swatting agencies like Purgatory are often young people in their teens or twenties. These young people enjoy the fact that swatting provokes a massive police response and creates fear in people. However, Cohen warns that swatting is a major problem because its rise could lead to suspicions that it is a swatting attack in the event of a real mass shooting.

In addition, the overseas media WIRED has succeeded in interviewing a person named 'Gores' who claims to be the leader of Purgatory.



An Online Group Says It's Behind a Campus Swatting Wave
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/08/30/us/school-shooting-hoax-universities-purgatory-swatting.html

Purgatory, which primarily operates on the encrypted messaging service Telegram, offers swatting services at fairly low prices: According to its online menu, swatting at schools costs $95, shopping malls $120, airports $140, and hospitals $150.

Purgatory is believed to be linked to the online group '764,' which targets teenagers for blackmail and swatting.

The existence of the online group '764' that uses Discord and Telegram to sexually blackmail teenagers is exposed - GIGAZINE



In an interview with Telegram, Gores told WIRED that he and another member named 'tor' were responsible for the swatting of universities. Purgatory said it had made $100,000 since starting the swatting business.

The Purgatory side hasn't escaped unscathed either: in 2024, three Purgatory members, Owen Jarboe , Brayden Grace , and Evan Strauss, were arrested on charges of cyberstalking and intimidation. Jarboe and Grace were just 19 years old.

When WIRED asked Gores if he was concerned about the FBI's investigation into the swatting incident, he replied, 'Fuck, don't scare me. It's business as usual, you know?' He also declared that he would continue swatting for the next two months.

Related Posts:

in Note, Posted by log1h_ik