Florida girl, 13, one of hundreds nationwide to receive racist mass-text

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Published  November 11, 2024 11:29pm EST
FOX 35 Orlando
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Girl, 13, one of hundreds to receive racist text

A seventh-grader at Howard Middle School is one of many people across the country who received a racial text message the day after Election Day.

ORLANDO, Fla. - A seventh-grader at Howard Middle School is one of many people across the country who received a racial text message the day after Election Day.

The message reads, "Greetings, you have been selected to pick cotton at the nearest plantation. Be ready at 1 p.m. SHARP with your belongings. Our executive slaves will come get you in a brown van, be prepared to be searched down once you enter the plantation. You are in plantation group B."

Kim Keller was shocked by the text, and she wasn’t even the recipient – her 13-year-old daughter was.

"My first thought was how do they know who you are?" Keller asked. "How did they get your information?"

Keller’s daughter got the message on Wednesday night at 7:44 p.m. She told Keller at least one dozen of her classmates got it too. Keller reported it to the Orlando Police Department.

"It’s 2024, this is not okay," Keller said. "It’s not okay that it’s not being talked about."

People across the country have reported receiving various versions of this same text. The anonymous senders have predominantly targeted young black Americans.

"The depth of information to do this by knowing a phone number and coordinating that with a minor and their race, gender, everything they have, that’s actually some deep information," said Matt Aubin.

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Aubin, works with Southern Recon Agency and specializes in cyber intelligence.

"That has to come from a very well put together database of intel," Aubin said. "My first opinion on that would through DMV-type data."

FOX 35’s Hannah Mackenzie told Aubin many of the message recipients are too young to have been at the DMV.

"Wow… that’s interesting," Aubin said. "I gotta be honest, that’s kinda like a left hook right there."

According to Aubin, one theory is that the information was obtained in a data breach, another, it was accessed by hacking into self-reported information.

"Another way we get things, is we buy it from data aggregators that purchase things through free programs where information is self-provided. Some of that could be different polling, or information that’s been gathered… surveys or social media, or different apps on your phone, it could be potentially through gaming apps or things like that."

Either way, Aubin said, it is likely multiple cyber-crimes were committed. Those could include hacking, fraud, gaining unauthorized access and data exfiltration – all of which can carry penalties up to 20 years in prison under the computer fraud and abuse act (CFAA).

"To whoever is behind this, i hope they are held accountable to the fullest extent of the law," Keller said. At this point, I really just want to entrust that the people that are in position of power to protect these kids that don’t have a voice for themselves, that don’t have a way to advocate for their information being compromised, I have to trust that they’re going to take action and do the right thing."

The FBI and the Justice Department are aware of the racial mass-texts, and the FCC is investigating alongside numerous state agencies.

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