The anonymity the internet provides can be both a good and a bad thing (though let's face it, mostly bad). Sure, you can keep yourself from getting harassed, but it also allows others to harass you without a second thought.
Unless you get caught, that is. And as one TikToker proved, if you don't cover your tracks, the people who you harass online will have a way of finding out who you are.
Rachel Everest (@araccoon82) posted a TikTok mid-August where she talked about an ex who had cheated on her. An anonymous user posted a now-deleted comment saying, "Probably because he wasn’t feeling appreciated because he was giving you everything and you weren’t matching his energy."
Sure, getting harassed online isn't uncommon. But what made this comment so interesting was the fact that, as Everest displays, the commenter was someone in her personal contacts list.
Everest then shows us the sheets she'd printed out, containing each of her 92 contacts (with their personal information covered for their own privacy, of course).
She begins with eliminating mutuals (since the person who posted the comment was likely using their main/only TikTok account), and then eliminated anyone listed as "in your contacts" from the mix, too.
But Everest wasn't done whittling down the possible suspect list. Next came eliminating anyone she knew wouldn't post something like that (which she lists as "smart women"). She then eliminates "Openly feminist men" and "old people."
But Everest wasn't quite done her sleuthing. She goes through each of the 17 suspects' profiles in order to look for clues. According to the text overlay on the screen, she "found lots."
From there, Everest decides to delete them from her contacts one by one "in order from most to least suspicious," to see if the contacts badge disappears from the comment.
She then writes a message to the harasser, saying, "Let's not act like your misogyny wasn't part of the reason you got fired."
Since posting the TikTok just a week ago, it's gained over 5 million views. Comments poured in, with many expressing how impressed they were with her sleuthing skills.
"Not even the FBI could work like this," a commenter said.
In a comment on her TikTok, she wrote, "1. This was in response to my previous video 2. PLS do not try and go to his profile/reach out in any way. It’s not MY vibe just enjoy the sleuth work."
What do you think of Everest's sleuthing? Let us know in the comments!
