Campus Alert Archive
UWG

Third Georgia College Swatting in One Day: UWG's Ingram Library Targeted Just Before 10 PM

GAswattingemergency notificationhigh confidence
Confirmed HoaxDetermined to be a hoax. The institutional response is documented because it reveals how the alert system performed under a perceived real threat.

Just before 10 PM EDT on Friday, August 29, 2025, the University of West Georgia received a swatting call about a man with a gun outside the Ingram Library on the Carrollton campus. UWG Police responded and determined the report was unfounded; an all-clear was issued around 10:30 PM. The incident was the third Georgia campus swatting that same day, following calls at the University of Georgia and Clark Atlanta University.

Alerts
2
Response
—
Killed
0
Injured
0
Institution
University of West Georgia
Public R2 · GA
~12,700 studentsWolfAlert
Confirmed Timeline

Alert Sequence

2 messages in sequence

Some alert texts below are approximate reconstructions from news coverage, not confirmed verbatim transcripts. Reconstructed texts are shown in italic with a dashed border. Verified verbatim texts have a solid border and are marked accordingly.

INITIAL ALERTSMS
Approximate reconstruction170 chars
WolfAlert: Reports of a man with a gun outside Ingram Library, Carrollton campus. Avoid the area. Shelter in place. UWG Police are responding. More information to follow.

This text has been reconstructed from news coverage and may not reflect the exact original wording.

FOX 5 Atlanta reported officials issued the alert 'just before 10 p.m.' after calls about a man with a gun outside the Ingram Library
Ingram Library is the central library on UWG's Carrollton campus and a heavily-used study location, especially on Friday evenings during the academic year
This was the third Georgia college swatting that same day — UGA at the Main Library and Clark Atlanta both received earlier calls
ALL CLEARSMS
Approximate reconstruction189 chars
WolfAlert: All-clear. After investigation, the reports of a man with a gun at Ingram Library have been determined to be unfounded. There is no threat to campus. Thank you for your patience.

This text has been reconstructed from news coverage and may not reflect the exact original wording.

The all-clear came approximately 30 minutes after the initial alert — a fast resolution typical of swatting incidents that police can quickly verify as false
UWG explicitly used 'unfounded' rather than 'hoax' or 'swatting' in its initial communication, though local media quickly identified the call as part of the swatting wave
By August 30, multiple media outlets and the FBI had connected the three Georgia incidents to the broader nationwide swatting campaign
Context

Background

Just before 10 PM EDT on Friday, August 29, 2025, the University of West Georgia received a swatting call reporting a man with a gun outside Ingram Library on the Carrollton campus. UWG Police responded and determined the report was unfounded, issuing an all-clear around 10:30 PM. The UWG call was the third Georgia campus swatting that same day — earlier calls had targeted the University of Georgia, where an alert was issued for a reported armed shooter near the main library, and Clark Atlanta University. All three were eventually deemed hoaxes. The triple-swatting on a single day prompted FBI Atlanta to publicly join the investigation into the rash of hoax active-shooter calls targeting Georgia colleges. The UWG incident fit the broader pattern of August 2025 campus swatting attributed to the cybercriminal group Purgatory, which by mid-September had been linked to swatting calls at over a dozen U.S. colleges. UWG Police's relatively quick all-clear (approximately 30 minutes) demonstrated improving institutional response times as the swatting wave continued — a contrast to early-wave incidents at Villanova and UTC where lockdowns lasted hours.
Analysis

Key Findings

UWG was the third Georgia college swatted on August 29, 2025 alone — UGA, Clark Atlanta, and UWG all received calls within hours of each other
The cluster prompted FBI Atlanta to publicly announce its involvement in the swatting investigation, elevating the federal response
UWG's relatively quick 30-minute resolution illustrated improving institutional response as universities developed better swatting playbooks
Like most calls in the August-September 2025 wave, the Ingram Library threat targeted a heavily-used central library — a pattern Purgatory deliberately exploited
Outcome
No injuries; no gunman found. UWG Police investigated, determined the reports were unfounded, and issued an all-clear approximately 30 minutes after the initial alert. No suspect was publicly identified.
Provenance

Sources

  1. News
    Swatting call at University of West Georgia; Third hoax at Georgia school on Friday (FOX 5 Atlanta)
    fox5atlanta.com
  2. News
    Reports of armed man at University of West Georgia were a hoax, school says (Atlanta News First)
    atlantanewsfirst.com
  3. Official
    Emergency Alert Update: Campus all clear following hoax (UGA Today)
    news.uga.edu
  4. News
    False shooter threats at Georgia colleges linked to swatting trend (Now Habersham)
    nowhabersham.com
  5. News
    More than a dozen universities have been targeted by false active shooter reports (CNN)
    cnn.com
Tags
swattinggeorgiacarrolltonpublic-r2libraryingram-libraryaugust-2025-swatting-wavepurgatorygeorgia-clusterfbi-atlantaHoax
Added May 2026Updated May 2026Via ingestion