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House Bill 2954 defines doxxing as when an individual
intentionally publishes another person’s private information,
such as a home address, without their consent to purposely harm
that individual.
Angela Inzano, policy and advocacy strategist for the ACLU of
Illinois, said her organization is opposed to the measure
because the language in the legislation is too broad.
The bill’s sponsor, state Rep. Jennifer Gong-Gershowitz,
D-Glenview, said the intent of the bill is not to limit
constitutionally protected speech.
“We feel it’s important that while we may not remove or
necessarily adopt all the suggestions from the ACLU, that we
have come as far as we can,” said Gong-Gershowitz. “We feel as
policymakers sometimes we need to make those calls to ensure we
address the harms we are seeking to address.”
Oregon and Nevada have passed anti-doxxing laws, and similar
legislation is currently moving through the Washington state
legislature.
A high-profile case of doxxing came from Elon Musk, who tweeted
in December that his son had been stalked by a driver in Los
Angeles. He claimed that internet tracking of his private jet
led to the situation.
The Illinois bill advanced out of committee and is headed to the
House floor.
Kevin Bessler reports on statewide issues in
Illinois for the Center Square. He has over 30 years of
experience in radio news reporting throughout the Midwest.
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