TikTok users share credit card information of judges that overturned Roe
Users also shared the addresses of the Republican-appointed judges, where protesters had gathered before
Support truly
independent journalism
Our mission is to deliver unbiased, fact-based reporting that holds power to account and exposes the truth.
Whether $5 or $50, every contribution counts.
Support us to deliver journalism without an agenda.
Louise Thomas
Editor
TikTok users are sharing personal information of the judges on the US Supreme Court following the overturning of Roe v Wade.
Roe v Wade guaranteed a woman’s constitutional right to an abortion, but Justice Samuel Alito and the other members of the court gave states power to legislate abortions at a state level.
Previously, women had total autonomy to terminate a pregnancy during the first trimester, and allowed some state influence over abortions in the second and third trimesters.
“We hold that Roe and Casey must be overruled,” Justice Alito wrote in a draft of an opinion dated 10 February. “It is time to heed the Constitution and return the issue of abortion to the people’s elected representatives.”
Now, many users are posting videos featuring Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito and Justice Amy Coney Barrett with seemingly personal information such as their credit card number, expiration date, and security code.
The videos are essentially slideshows of the justice’s portraits, with text over their faces surrounded by a transparent red box – possibly as an attempt to hide its contents from TikTok’s algorithm.
It is unclear whether the information is valid but Vice, which reported on the news, says that the comments are “filled with the message: ‘It worked!’”
Other videos include home addresses of five Republican-appointed judges who overturned the decision.
This information is already well known, as protesters marched to the home of Justice Alito after the leak of his anti-abortion draft opinion in May 2022. Justice Brett Kavanaugh and Chief Justice John Roberts also found groups of protesters outside their private residences.
TikTok said in a statement that its "policies do not prohibit the topic of abortion, and we expect creators to adhere to our Community Guidelines which apply equally to everyone and everything on TikTok. We strictly prohibit and will remove content that shares personally identifiable information."
Subscribe to Independent Premium to bookmark this article
Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments