Trust

Editorial, disclosure & corrections

We track crime-related incidents that appear in official public records and circulate on social media, from the moment they surface through to verified resolution. We are an editorial publication built on primary sources — not a tip line, a crowd-investigation forum, or a place to identify people the authorities have not.

How we source

Every factual claim links to a primary source — an official police or court record, or established coverage. If we cannot source a claim, we do not publish it. Contested or unconfirmed claims are labeled as unverified rather than asserted.

How we handle names

This is enforced in our publishing system, not left to individual judgment. We do not name private individuals in connection with an alleged crime; incident pages describe the event. A person is named only when they are a defendant of record in a charged or adjudicated matter, that matter is documented in official records and covered by established outlets, and we hold at least two independent primary sources. Otherwise the name does not appear anywhere on the page.

Presumption of innocence

A charge is not a conviction. Pages involving a person facing charges state the current legal status plainly, and we revise them as matters resolve.

Video verification

For viral footage we publish a status — authentic, miscaptioned, recirculated, staged, AI-generated, or unverified — established through source contact, geolocation, and metadata. We embed original posts using each platform's native tools and never rehost anyone's media.

Corrections, removal & expungement

We correct errors promptly and visibly. When a matter is resolved in a person's favor, or a record is expunged, we update or remove the page and remove it from search indexing. To request a correction or review, email corrections@viralcrime.example.