Transgender activists have flooded a Utah tip line created to alert state officials to possible violations of a new bathroom law with thousands of hoax reports in an effort to shield trans residents and their allies from any legitimate complaints that could threaten their safety.

Within hours of its publication Wednesday night, trans activists and community members from across the U.S. already had spread the Utah tip line widely on social media. Many shared the spam they

Utah Auditor John Dougall wants everyone to know he never expected to be a “bathroom monitor” — and he didn’t ask to be. It’s been a matter of days since Dougall’s office was officially tasked with making sure Utah schools and other agencies are complying with the state’s new transgender bathroom restriction — and already