In Web of Make Believe: Death, Lies & The Internet, Brian Knappenberger (director of The Internet's Own Boy: The Story of Aaron Swartz) looks at how terrible people use the Internet to do terrible things behind the anonymity of their computer screens.
Web of Make Believe: Death, Lies & The Internet is a 6-part anthology series from director Brian Knappenberger, Luminant Media and Imagine Documentaries that tells stories of people caught in a dark and twisted web of modern misinformation and digital deception. Haunting, bizarre and up-to-the-moment relevant, the series explores consequences of "SWATing", takes a chilling trip down the rabbit hole of white supremacy, joins a Federal hunt for the suspect of a brazen IRS heist and investigates a murder set against the backdrop of Russian election interference. Rich with distinctive characters and surprising plotlines, reality is warped when the ordinary American household collides with a chaotic web of misinformation.
Episodes Include:
- Death by SWAT – When an online gamer makes a series of fraudulent 911 calls to lure SWAT teams to innocent people's homes, his targeted trickery turns to tragedy.
- A Murder in D.C. – The murder of political staffer Seth Rich in 2016 spawns a myriad of unfounded conspiracy theories as the man's family — and the truth — hang in the balance.
- I'm Not a Nazi – A woman recounts her journey to becoming a mouthpiece for white nationalist hate speech, work that culminates in high-profile violence and murder.
- Sextortion – Several women recall their harrowing experiences with one man's heinous attempts at virtual blackmail, aimed at obtaining sensitive sexual material.
- The Stingray, Part 1 – From counterfeit Beanie Babies to very real tax fraud: Two skilled hackers revisit the cyber schemes that landed them in the sights of law enforcement.
- The Stingray, Part 2 – The FBI escalates its pursuit of an elusive hacker, but he soon turns the tables by questioning the legality of a key tool in their investigation.