Crime Alert! Durham Police Warn Schools and Parents About Group Targeting Kids as Young as 8.

Toronto, Ontario – October 13, 2026. Police in Durham Region are issuing another warning to parents and guardians about “The Com,” an online group of predators that is reportedly targeting children in the area through popular social media and gaming platforms.

Short for “The Community,” investigators claim the group uses grooming, manipulation, coercion, and intimidation to exploit young people, which can lead to violent or criminal behavior.

“Offenders often build trust and create secrecy through fear or shame, pressuring victims into harmful or unsafe activities,” police stated in a release today (Tuesday).

According to police, children as young as seven and eight years old have been targeted on apps and platforms such as Discord, Telegram, Snapchat, Roblox, Minecraft, Twitch, and Steam.

In their news release, police outlined how the group victimizes its targets, including:

1.   Building trust through friendship or romantic attention
2.   Manipulating youth using fear, guilt, or intimidation
3.   Coercing victims into harmful or unsafe activities, which may include:
4.   Creating or sharing inappropriate and exploitative images or videos
5.   Engaging in self-harm or harming others or animals
6.   Displaying concerning usernames, symbols, or messages
7.       Coercing children to participate in crimes—such as making hoax 911 calls (swatting), conducting online attacks, or sharing harmful content—often without the victims realizing the seriousness of their actions
8.       Forcing compliance through threats such as exposing private information, doxing, or swatting.

Police have not released any descriptions of suspects involved with the group. No arrests have been made so far.

This is the second warning about “The Com” this year and follows a threat directed at a Pickering school in January, which police previously indicated may have been linked to the group. William Dunbar Public School, located near Dixie Road and Finch Avenue, was placed under lockdown for several hours on January 27 after a threatening phone call was made to the school.

Investigators encourage parents and guardians to observe for “patterns or clusters” of the following behaviors:

1.   Use of encrypted apps (e.g., Discord, Telegram) without parental knowledge
2.   Withdrawal, secrecy, mood changes, or declining academic performance
3.   Increased or secretive use of phones or electronic devices
4.   Interest in extreme or harmful online ideologies
5.   New online contacts that your child seems unusually attached to or afraid of

“While one of these signs may not be cause for concern, multiple indicators together may warrant attention,” police advised.