doxxing
“Doxxing” (or “doxing”) is the act of publicly releasing personal information that may identify an individual without their consent. Types of information that may fall under this category include a Social Security number, home address, phone number, email, workplace, or family information. The term originates from the early 1990s hacking era, where someone may “drop dox” (meaning documents) to identify another person online.
Under federal law, doxxing someone performing certain official duties (see: covered person) is illegal under 18 U.S.C. § 119. However, there is currently no comprehensive federal law that makes doxxing someone a crime. Other statutes may cover components of doxxing; for example; stalking, under 18 U.S.C. § 2261A, requires an individual to engage in a course of conduct that would cause, attempt to cause, or be reasonably expected to cause substantial emotional distress to a person, which doxxing may be included in some circumstances.
While there is no overarching federal law covering the practice of doxxing, some states have laws specifically against doxxing, such as Alabama, which defines it as intentionally electronically publishing, posting, or providing personal identifying information of another individual with the intent that others will use that information to harass or harm that individual, and the individual is actually harassed or harmed. See: AL Code § 13A-11-38. In California, the electronic distribution of someone’s personally identifiable information with the intent of causing unwanted physical contact or harassment by a third party is a misdemeanor. See: CA Penal Code § 653.2. Other jurisdictions have laws that may cover components of doxxing but may not explicitly have laws against doxxing.
[Last reviewed in July of 2026 by the Wex Definitions Team]
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