Newsroom Takes Proactive Steps to Protect Journalists from Harassment

A leading independent newsroom focusing on investigative journalism partnered with DeleteMe to protect journalists from harassment.

For this organization, groundbreaking investigative reports were taking a human toll. As they
uncovered stories that some would rather not see made public, the newsroom’s journalists
faced continuous harassment from disgruntled individuals and groups. Terrifyingly, reporters
found that threats against them were becoming increasingly personal, and the prospect of malicious release of their personal information online through doxxing was becoming an ever-
present worry.

Threats, which often focused on reporters’ personal lives, were causing significant damage to
staff morale. Talented reporters found themselves reluctant to cover particular stories, and
some even felt compelled to leave their positions. Finding a way to reduce staff harassment and improve staff retention became a critical priority for the newsroom. Newsroom management needed a way to keep reporters’ personally identifiable information (PII) out of the hands of malicious individuals and groups to help keep journalists feel safe.

The Solution

With reporters under pressure from threats that weaponized their PII, the newsroom’s HR team
deployed DeleteMe’s online employee PII monitoring and removal service as a proactive response.
Immediately after deployment, DeleteMe got to work, autonomously finding and removing
journalists’ PII, including home addresses, personal phone numbers, and family details.

DeleteMe was able to provide the newsroom with the ability to extend coverage proactively,
protecting staff working on major stories. As they went about their critical investigative work,
covered staff could also see the progress of DeleteMe’s efforts through monthly removal reports.

Results

Deploying DeleteMe meant that rather than waiting for threats to happen, the newsroom was
able to give its journalists genuinely proactive protection against targeted harassment. With
DeleteMe’s solution providing a transparent PII monitoring program, covered staff felt more confident
to continue reporting on important issues, knowing that their employer was taking steps to
protect them from harassment.