Alleged hack sends police to Call of Duty player’s house

A teen was the victim of an unfortunate prank while playing Call of Duty: Black Ops, which brought police officers to his door after a false 911 call.

February 15, 2012 11:30 AM6

A Lewisville, TX teen playing Call of Duty: Black Ops had police at his door on Monday, after a prank 911 call gave a false report of gun violence at his house. The teenage boy, whose name was withheld from reports, was playing on the Xbox 360 when a voice he didn’t recognize threatened to send police to his house.

“Some dude just popped out of nowhere, and basically said he’s going to hack me, he’s going to get my information, call the SWAT team over to my front yard,” the boy said.

He ignored it, but the purported hacker made good on his threat. CBSDFW reports that the Lewisville 911 center received a call using the AT&T Instant Message Relay Service, which is intended to help hearing impaired users reach emergency assistance. The report claimed that someone was shot and that the shooter was still inside the house.

Police responded, but saw no signs of a shooting as the teen continued to play. His parents noticed officers outside, and a bullhorn calling for the teen’s name. The mother called 911 herself, which connected her to an officer on the scene. The officer convinced the family to come out and clear up the misunderstanding. Police are investigating and currently seeking a subpoena to get more information as they look into the matter.

“We were all scared out of our minds,” said the teen. “Didn’t understand why they were here. We thought there was some stranger, some dude running around our house, hiding behind the boat. We didn’t know. We didn’t expect nothing.”

It’s unclear how the hack would have taken place to gain such detailed information, or even if a hack occurred at all. Shacknews has contacted both Microsoft and the Lewisville police department, and will update as more information becomes available.