College campuses at Kansas State University in Manhattan and the University of Arkansas-Fayetteville are both victims of “swatting” incidents on the first day of classes.

 

The campuses of both schools were briefly locked down yesterday after 9-1-1 dispatchers in Manhattan and Fayetteville received reports of active shooters. The K-State incident was reported at Hale Library, while the U of A incident was reported at that school's David W. Mullins Library.

 

In both instances, officers responded to the campus and found no indication of violence or threats to students' safety. Both reports were determined to be hoaxes. The Department of Homeland Security defines swatting as the act of placing false calls to emergency responders, often reporting a false and severe ongoing crisis at a specific location. The goal of swatting is to provoke a significant law enforcement response, creating chaos and potentially resulting in violence.

 

Similar hoax reports were made at other major universities in the previous days.

 

While classes continued as normal at Kansas State following the incident, officials at U of A canceled classes for the remained of yesterday, with normal operations resuming today.