Understanding the Current State of Knowledge and Future Directions of Doxing Research: A Social Cognitive Theory Perspective

Abstract

Doxing is the public release of personal information with harmful intentions. It is an emergent online practice that is used in social protest movements, for personal revenge, or even as a means of cyber-warfare. To amalgamate the ambiguous multi-disciplinary research, we summarize the current state of knowledge and identify directions for doxing research. To that end, this study applies social cognitive theory in a systematic review of 28 doxing papers and provides an overview of current doxing research trends. The review shows that doxing research has been primarily focused on the environmental perspective, particularly the legal regulation of doxing while neglecting personal and behavioral factors. We identify a series of research questions to guide and inspire future research on the role of digital technologies in this emerging issue.