English
EspañolWhat is spoofing?
Spoofing is a type of masking or hiding one’s actual phone number by having a different number show up on the recipient’s caller ID. The fake number is chosen by the spoofer.
Is spoofing illegal?
Most states do not have laws that specifically deal with spoofing technology itself. However, it can be illegal to use spoofing to defraud or harm someone. It may also be illegal to use someone else’s identity to defraud or to impersonate certain public officials. See What laws protect me from impersonation? for more information on some criminal laws that could apply to spoofing.
What are some ways an abuser could use spoofing technology?
An abuser could use spoofing to trick you into picking up the phone if you would not pick up a phone call that comes from the abuser’s number. Depending on what number the abuser enters into the spoofing app, you might think you are receiving a telephone call from a family member, an advocate, your lawyer, or the courthouse. Be cautious if you receive a call that appears to come from the courthouse, for example, telling you that your court hearing date has been changed. This may be a way the abuser is tricking you into missing your court date.
Another way that an abuser can use spoofing for impersonation is by calling others with your phone number as the “caller.” The abuser may pretend to be you to cause problems with your personal or professional life. An abuser may also do this to create a false record of you calling him/her multiple times in order to report you to the police or courts for harassment. However, you can prove that you did not make the calls since they would not appear on your phone bill in your outgoing call log.
Some spoofing apps allow users to alter their voice as well so it appears to come from another gender, for example. Or it could be used to add background noise or record the call.
How can I prove spoofing in court?
It can be very difficult to prove spoofing in court. A judge may not understand how it an abuser can make phone calls when the phone number on your call log doesn’t match the abuser’s number. But there are some steps that a victim of spoofing can take to help the judge to better understand what is happening. Here are some things you may want to think about:
1. Similar times: Is there anything that you notice about the times of when the abuser usually calls/texts and when the spoofed calls/texts arrive? For example, let’s say the abuser works from 2 PM until midnight and, in the past, always called you right after midnight. Then, all of the calls/texts with the spoofed number came in at the exact same time. Perhaps that can be an indication that it is the abuser making the spoofed calls. The smaller the timeframe or the more unique the timeframe, the better.
2. Similar information: Are there any similarities between texts that you received from the abuser’s number and those from the spoofed ones? If all of the messages are written in a similar manner, with similar words, or with similar information, this can be an indication that it is the abuser making the spoofed texts.
3. Suspicious timing: Did the calls/texts start right after a certain event that can be proven in court? For example, let’s say you could show social media posts, voicemails, emails, or other proof of your breakup with the abuser. And then, the spoofed calls start immediately afterwards. This may help convince a judge that the abuser sent the calls/texts.
4. Other types of abuse: Is the abuser committing other acts of abuse that you can prove to the judge? Showing up at your home or work? Posting negative things about you online? (Sometimes, doing a Google search for your own name can reveal if the person is posting anything about you online). Proving to the judge that there are other forms of abuse going on during the same time period of harassing spoofed calls/texts could help convince the judge that it’s the abuser.
5. Evidence in court: Sometimes the best way to get evidence is actually to request help from the court. For example, you may be able to ask the judge to sign a subpoena for the abuser’s phone records. Phone records are often the most direct way to prove spoofing. Coming prepared with all of the information listed above may be useful in trying to convince the judge to sign such a subpoena. Sometimes, your number won’t show up on the phone call logs. This is because the abuser can call a spoofing number to call your number. In that case, only the spoofing number that the abuser used would show up on the phone records of the abuser. However, if the abuser’s phone records show that the abuser made calls at the exact time you received calls from the spoofed number, this may cause the judge to believe the abuser made those calls. However, comparing phone records is not a perfect answer because not all spoofing calls will be on the phone records. For example, if the person makes the spoofed calls through an app, you may need to request the records from the app itself; but you may not know which app was used. In fact, if the calls were made from an app and therefore do not appear on the abuser’s phone records, this could even harm your case. The judge may see this as proof that the abuser did not make the calls.
For more information about getting evidence for court, see the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges’ How to Gather Tech Evidence and 10 Steps for Presenting Evidence in Court.
