Discord Under Fire: A Deadly Timeline of Shootings Linked to the Platform

Discord was never supposed to be this.

When it launched in 2015, it was marketed as a fun chat app for gamers — a place to talk strategy during “Call of Duty” raids, share anime memes, and build friendships in digital spaces. Fast-forward to 2025, and it’s at the center of one of the most disturbing conversations of our time: its repeated connection to mass shootings.

What started as whispers — “the shooter had a Discord server” — has now become a pattern impossible to ignore. Investigators, journalists, and even grieving families are pointing to Discord as the place where plans were shared, manifestos uploaded, and violence glorified. And the receipts don’t lie.

A Timeline of Bloodshed

To understand just how deep Discord’s role runs, here’s a chronological look at mass shootings and tragedies tied to the platform:

• Parkland School Shooting (Florida, Feb 14, 2018) – 17 killed, 17 injured.The gunman was reportedly active in Discord groups where he posted racist slurs, gun photos, and violent fantasies. Those posts came to light after the massacre.

• Buffalo Supermarket Shooting (New York, May 14, 2022) – 10 killed, 6 injured.Hours before opening fire, the shooter dropped his racist manifesto on Discord. He also live-streamed his attack. The content spread like wildfire across extremist corners of the internet.

• Uvalde School Shooting (Texas, May 24, 2022) – 21 killed, 17 injured.One of the deadliest school shootings in U.S. history. The gunman messaged a girl he met on Discord about his plans and weapons. Nothing was flagged.

• Highland Park Parade Shooting (Illinois, Jul 4, 2022) – 7 killed, 48 injured.Investigators discovered the shooter engaged in Discord communities where violence was normalized and celebrated.

• Aracruz School Shooting (Brazil, Nov 25, 2022) – 4 killed, 11 injured.The shooter, a teenager, reportedly used Discord to connect with extremist groups.

• Covenant School Shooting (Tennessee, Mar 27, 2023) – 6 killed, 1 injured.Reports confirmed the shooter’s online activity included troubling Discord conversations before the deadly attack.

• Graz School Shooting (Austria, Oct 2023) – 10 killed, 11 injured.Another case where Discord served as a hub for dark conversations.

• Abundant Life Christian School Shooting (Uganda, Jan 2024) – 3 killed, 7 injured.Discord’s reach is global. This tragedy exposed how extremist ideologies circulate even outside the U.S.

• Perry High School Shooting (Iowa, Jan 4, 2024) – 1 killed, 7 injured.Again, online interactions through Discord showed violent signals ignored.

• Apalachee High School Shooting (Georgia, Sep 4, 2024) – 4 killed, 9 injured.Another school community shattered. Investigators found Discord use tied to glorification of school violence.

• Charlie Kirk Assassination (Utah, Sep 2025) – 1 killed.Perhaps the most politically explosive case yet. Discord was reportedly used to hype up the attack on a conservative leader, pushing the accountability conversation into new territory.

  
  

Why Discord? The Anatomy of an Online Dark Alley

Why does Discord, more than other apps, keep showing up in mass shooting investigations? The answer is baked into its design:

• Private servers → invite-only communities make it harder to monitor.

• Minimal oversight → fewer moderators compared to platforms like Facebook or TikTok.

• Youth-heavy audience → Gen Z and Gen Alpha live on Discord, which means it’s where vulnerable, isolated teens can be groomed into extremist thinking.

• Freedom culture → Discord built its brand on privacy, free expression, and anonymity — all of which become dangerous when twisted by violent ideologies.

It’s the perfect storm: young people, secrecy, and extremism.

The Numbers Don’t Lie

Let’s keep it real: gun violence in the U.S. is already out of control. According to the Gun Violence Archive:

• Over 600 mass shootings happen every year in the U.S.

• 2022, the same year as Buffalo and Uvalde, saw a record high of 48,000 gun deaths.

• A growing share of shooters are under 25 years old — exactly the age group most active on Discord.

And it’s not just the U.S. — the Brazil and Austria cases show how Discord connects shooters across borders.

Legal Accountability: Can Discord Be Sued?

Here’s where it gets messy. In the U.S., social media companies are shielded by Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, which protects platforms from being held liable for what users post.

That’s why Facebook wasn’t sued for January 6th. That’s why YouTube avoids blame for radicalizing rabbit holes. And that’s why Discord so far has escaped lawsuits.

But families are pushing back. Some lawmakers are calling for revisions to Section 230 that would force companies to take responsibility if their platforms are repeatedly linked to violence.

Will Congress move? With Charlie Kirk’s assassination now tied to Discord, pressure from the right might finally meet pressure from the left.

The Human Cost

Behind every line on this list are communities destroyed:

• Parents burying their children.

• Survivors left with lifelong trauma.

• Schools, parades, and churches turned into crime scenes.

For families, the idea that these killers announced their plans in plain sight on Discord feels like betrayal — not just by the shooter, but by a billion-dollar company that could have stopped it.

What Discord Says

Discord insists it’s cooperating with law enforcement and working on moderation. They’ve banned thousands of extremist servers and claim to invest in safety.

But let’s be real: those statements ring hollow when body counts keep rising. Critics say Discord is reactive, not proactive — always cleaning up after tragedies instead of preventing them.

Where Do We Go From Here?

Some hard conversations are coming:

• Do we force Discord to monitor private chats? Critics say yes; free speech advocates call it government overreach.

• Do parents need to wake up to what apps their kids are really using? Absolutely. Discord is no longer “just a gaming app.”

• Should lawmakers step in? If nothing changes, expect bipartisan bills targeting apps like Discord.

Every generation has its dark alley. For Gen Z and Gen Alpha, Discord may be that alley.

This timeline proves something terrifying: the link between Discord and mass shootings isn’t coincidence , it’s a pattern spanning nearly a decade.

The question is no longer if Discord should be held accountable.

It’s when.

✨ Join the Conversation ,Do you think platforms like Discord should be forced to monitor private servers, or does that risk crossing into government surveillance? Drop your thoughts in the comments or share this post , because until we talk about it, nothing changes.