CYBERSTALKING

WHAT IT IS

WHAT IS DONE

ARE YOU A VICTIM?

WHAT YOU CAN DO

WHO CAN HELP

(FMI Visit: Cyberstalking )

At one time cyberstalkers–those who stalk someone via the Internet–was easy for a criminal to do and difficult for a victim to charge, prosecute and convict.

The advent of the Internet caused explosive changes in daily life and put lawmakers into a tailspin on what changes to make first. Immediate need became the byword of the day, and lawmaker’s actions followed suit.

But that time has passed, and today there are significant laws and legislation protecting victims–and more pending.

WHAT DO CYBERSTALKERS DO?

Many track or monitor a person. Groups and organizations, too, can become targets. A cyberstalker might make false accusations against the victim, might gather information and use it illegally (identity theft, solicitation, subscribing a victim to numerous spam lists, pornographic websites, or levy threats.) The purpose is typically to harass the victim and/or to damage his/her reputation.

Often the repeated behavior persists to the point that the stalker is directed (directly or through a third party, who may or may not be an authority) to cease and desist. Depending on the mental health of the stalker, and the depth of his/her obsession, the stalker either chooses to stop stalking or continues.

Of those who continue, many use an associate and/or friend, who might or might not be aware of the harassment and/or the warnings to the stalker to cease and desist and to leave the victim alone. In a real sense, they too become victims.

With cyberstalkers, the stalking isn’t normally a matter of any one action. In fact, singular actions might be legal ones. But the continuous pounding of action upon action upon action collectively completes a larger picture of the depth of a mental assault on the victim.

WHO IS A STALKER?

Some stalkers are strangers. Others know their victim.

Generally those who know their victim have no current relationship with the victim. Either they never did, or it ceased to exist some time ago, and the choice to sever well might have been the stalker’s decision.

Stalkers are notorious for making false accusations. For claiming they are the victim. For encouraging others to harass and/or make disparaging comments to or about the victim based on false information fed to them by the stalker.

Some take stalking even further, into attacks on data, infringing on copyrights, posting material in public forums under the victim’s name, claiming the victim’s identity. Even reprinting the victim’s material without express permission to do so. Some violate personal email by uploading it into a public forum without the author’s consent.

Still other stalkers cross over into deeper identity theft by placing orders in the victim’s name or participating in objectionable activities while impersonating the victim.

Understand that the cyberstalker is obsessed. What might have started as curiosity escalates to obsession.

WHAT IS THE CYBERSTALKER’S GOAL?

The stalker’s goal is to initiate contact where none exists.

I’m reminded of the child. To get attention, a child will attempt to gain attention through constructive means. But if that doesn’t work, the child will adopt destructive means. The end goal is attention. How it is obtained is insignificant to the stalker. A crucial difference worthy of note is that a cyberstalker might or might not be immature but s/he is not a child and his/her actions are far more destructive. (To the victim, but also to him/herself.)

CAN A CYBERSTALKER GET PHYSICAL?

Yes. It’s documented in the form of abusive phone calls, snail mail, packages left at residences by stalkers told to stay away (a mental home invasion). Reports have been made of vandalism, trespassing and even physical assault. Some say the deeper the stalker’s frustration at not being in control of the victim/situation or at having his/her attempts to contact thwarted, the greater the odds that frustration will escalate into more severe attacks.

IS THERE LEGAL RECOURSE?

Yes. Lawmakers have made strides to protect victims. Not surprisingly, California first put laws into effect in 1999. The State of Florida followed in placing a ban on cyberstalking in 2003. Many other states have followed. (So have many countries. Visit the notes section on the above link for more specifics.) That’s legislation on a state level. On a federal level, the lawmaker’s are still catching up, but they did address cyberstalking by incorporating it into stalking statues addressed in legislation passed in 2000.(1) So victims are not without protection.

DOES THE VICTIM ALWAYS KNOW S/HE IS A VICTIM OF CYBERSTALKING?

No. The victim well might not know s/he is being stalked. At least, not until the stalker’s obsession escalates. In some situations, however, the victim might know it from the start. Or s/he might know it but not identify the behavior as stalking until the stalker’s actions escalate to an obvious point.

Often, particularly in the case of sex offenders and/or those with malicious tendencies toward minors, the victim is not aware that they’re a victim until they are in significant danger from the stalker, which makes it imperative that parents and authority figures in minor’s lives educate them to the risks and warning signs. Armed with information and alerted to the warning signs, the kids then have a better chance to protect themselves and they know to alert parents and/or authority figures to potential dangers so that they might take steps to protect the children before they become victims.

WHAT IF YOU HAVE A PUBLIC PERSONAE?

If you have a public personae, it’s all the more important to be aware–or to get aware, and stay aware.

To get a complete listing of what you can do to protect yourself and your interests, visit your state’s website and/or contact local law enforcement.

Remember that cyberstalking isn’t typically a single event but a repetition of events that collectively constitute criminal activity. It isn’t a matter of threats being levied. Monitoring you is sufficient violation.

PUBLIC PERSONAE TIPS:

For a listing of things you can do to protect yourself and your interests, click here.

If you incorporate those tips, do what you can to avoid contact with the cyberstalker, then you’re taking reasonable measures to protect yourself and your interests.

If those reasonable measures do not work and the stalker persists, then you’ve got indisputable proof of actions in your records: Preventative actions you’ve taken, and hostile actions the stalker has taken.

The authorities then have what they need to do their jobs–and you can go back to living your life.

Most importantly, be aware. The Internet is a wonderful tool, but it can be used as a weapon.

Don’t willingly become a victim.*

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(1) See the FMI [for more information] URL above for more information/resources on domestic and foreign information on cyberstalking. Be sure to check the notes section for in-depth references.

©2008, Vicki Hinze