A website seeking anonymous tips on people violating Texas' new law restricting abortions has been inundated with spam after viral calls from social media users.
The law, which went into effect on Wednesday, bans physicians from providing abortions if a fetal heartbeat is detected (including embryonic cardiac activity). This can happen as early as six weeks into a pregnancy. While the law prohibits the state from enforcing the ban, it instead authorizes private citizens to bring civil suits against anyone who "aids or abets" an abortion.
A "whistleblower" website set up by the anti-abortion group Texas Right to Life calls on community members to anonymously report anyone they think might be violating the law -- which can even include a driver taking someone to a clinic.
As the online submission form spread across the internet, scores of social media users from TikTok to Twitter reacted by calling on people to flood the tip line with anything but violators.
One TikTok user said in a video that she had submitted 742 fake reports of Texas Gov. Greg Abbott -- a proponent of the law -- getting an abortion.
"It would be a shame if TikTok crashed the Prolifewhistleblower.com website," the caption stated. "Real shame." The video garnered more than 80,000 likes and more than 480,000 views.
Another TikTok user even says he coded an iOS shortcut to let iPhone users submit false reports repeatedly. His video garnered more than 175,000 views.
The calls soon emerged on Twitter, Reddit...
Read Full Story: https://abcnews.go.com/Technology/social-media-users-mobilize-inundate-tip-line-seeking/story?id=79819841
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