Five U.S. flights have been evacuated, delayed or diverted in the past week as a result of threats made against airlines on Twitter.
On top of that, at least 20 different flights have been threatened in a series of tweets from different users since Saturday, NBC News reported. More than 50 threats have been made online since Jan. 17, CNN said. The messages are often bomb threats, or sometimes discuss other weapons supposedly aboard a plane.
None of the threats have been substantiated, and not all have caused delays, but the law enforcement response shows just how seriously the tweeted threats are being taken. It also highlights the struggles airlines and authorities face when a single tweet from an anonymous account can force them to take costly precautionary measures.
The FBI is “actively investigating a number of threats to aircraft,” said spokesman Paul Bresson in a statement. “The investigation is ongoing and we haven’t determined whether it’s an individual or group of individuals that is responsible.”
On Sunday, a threat caused two planes to be evacuated upon arrival at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport: a JetBlue flight from Long Beach, California, and a regional SkyWest jet from Phoenix. The same day, Delta Flight 1061 from Los Angeles to Orlando was diverted to Dallas because of another tweeted threat. Authorities searched the aircraft before the flight continued Sunday evening.
On Saturday, bomb threats on Twitter mentioned two jets bound for Atlanta, prompting F-16 fighter jets to escort the planes. The threats targeted Southwest Flight 2492, which arrived at Atlanta from Milwaukee, and Delta Flight 1156, which arrived from Portland, Oregon.
The FBI also said a flight from Los Angeles International Airport to O'Hare International Airport in Chicago received a threat early Tuesday afternoon.
[img src="http://admin.mashable.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/AP485225582143.jpg" caption="Passengers were isolated at the Atlanta airport Saturday while two airplanes were being searched after authorities received what they described as "credible" bomb threats." credit="David Goldman" alt="Bomb Threat"]
Twitter spokesperson Nu Wexler told Mashable that the company's guidelines for law enforcement indicate that Twitter can provide information to the authorities during times of emergency, including a bomb threat.
Law enforcement officials are directed to submit a form on Twitter's site or fax them a request for an emergency situation that "involves the danger of death or serious physical injury to a person that Twitter may have information necessary to prevent."
Though Twitter might not know the real name of an account holder, its policies suggest that it could provide other information to officials like IP addresses and email addresses. Wexler said Twitter wouldn't comment on specific accounts for privacy and security reasons.
In some of the cases, threats were tweeted directly at the airlines' customer service accounts that were interacting with the Twitter users.
Amazing to see how @DeltaAssist handled the bomb threats like a pro. That's how you Brand. pic.twitter.com/BHNcaSi2hi— Brian Ries (@moneyries) January 24, 2015
One Delta message indicated that the threat was being taken seriously. The accounts associated with the threats have since been removed.
@AllahuAhkbar911 We take all threats serious and have reported your comments to our corporate security team for further review/action. *CB— Delta Assist (@DeltaAssist) January 25, 2015
On Tuesday, Delta's Twitter customer service account responded a threat from the account @SethDStewart, which has also since been deleted.
@SethDStewart We take all threats serious and have reported your comments to our corporate security team for further review/action. *WG— Delta Assist (@DeltaAssist) January 28, 2015
It was unclear if any of threats were connected.
Flight diversions and other emergency measures can cost airlines and law enforcement agencies thousands or tens of thousands of dollars.
Penalties for making a bomb threat against a passenger plane can include jail time and stiff fines. In 2013, a former United flight attendant pleaded guilty to one count of false information and hoaxes after making bomb threats against the carrier; he was sentenced to 18 months in federal prison and ordered to pay more than $300,000 to United and the Los Angeles police.
Additional reporting by The Associated Press