'Flash robs': How Twitter is being twisted for criminal gain

[Sherman A1]

Atlanta
A message goes out over Twitter and suddenly hordes of young people appear in a store and start stealing thousands of dollars’ worth of merchandise. Then, as quickly as they came, they disappear.

It’s happened in cities from Las Vegas to South Orange, N.J. – a criminal twist on the “flash mobs” phenomenon in which people use social-media websites to organize instant political events, massive snowball fights, or insurrections in the Middle East.

Police are on the alert. “We have to knock this out,” incoming Chi­cago Police Superintendent Garry McCarthy said recently after several major stores, including The North Face and Filene’s Basement, were hit by “flash robs” along the city’s Miracle Mile shopping district, raising concerns that tourists might begin to avoid the areas.

For More.....

http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/2011/0803/Flash-robs-How-Twitter-is-being-twisted-for-criminal-gain-VIDEO

[JVS]

1. zOMG! Won't somebody please think about the children!

[indurancevile]

2. twitter IS twisted, all on its lonesome.

[pipi_k]

7. I signed up a few months ago and...

took a look around.

It really is twisted.

People "following" each other?

Based on a bunch of inane comments?


I had mixed feelings. If nobody "followed" me, I would feel like I'm not that interesting. If people did "follow" me, I would feel like I'm being stalked.


Happily deleted it from my iPhone.

[HereSince1628]

3. Had one of these in Milwaukee in June if robbery wasn't enough

as the rob-mob dispersed in some of its participants engaged in assaults on people in a public park.

[Javaman]

4. To bad we couldn't use twitter for "spontaneous" protests. nt

[Yavin4]

5. So, Now The Government Has "Justification" for Outlawing Using Twitter for Political Purposes

This sounds a lot like the "wilding" crock that we heard about during the 80s.

[PDittie]

6. This is how the revolution begins

once the police start brutalizing the children, then it will escalate.