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Home  News ECCOMMUNITY: Cyberstalking; it's frightening, it's intrusive, and it's against the law.
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ECCOMMUNITY: Cyberstalking; it's frightening, it's intrusive, and it's against the law. |
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by Kathy Pacheco, Family Advocacy
Cyberstalking; it's frightening, it's intrusive, and it's against the law.
HURLBURT FIELD - Jane was surprised to see her estranged husband sitting in a booth at the restaurant. He disliked Chinese food and always complained when she ordered it. How would he know she was there meeting her girlfriends for dinner? He lived across town and she picked this particular restaurant feeling assured he would not be there. She had only communicated via email with her friends, so she found it puzzling that he seemed to know her every move.
This sounds like a coincidence, but Jane's estranged husband knew exactly when, where and with whom Jane was meeting. He had accessed her email, without her knowledge, and had been keeping tabs on her. You're probably thinking he had her password, but that is not necessarily the case. Before Jane changed the locks to her home after he moved out, her husband installed Spy-ware on her computer. This allowed him to read every keystroke, and see exactly who she was communicating with and what she said. He was also able to acquire all her login and password information.
October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month and in this age of advanced technology it doesn't take a computer guru to figure out how to use this type of software. Spy-ware is just one example of new ideas that build on existing knowledge of violence against women and stalking. While not exclusive to female victims, they comprise by far the greater number of victims of intimate partner violence.
Only in the past 15 years has the legal system begun to recognize and address the crime of stalking. There is a clear indication through current research, that there is a link between stalking and intimate partner violence. In studies conducted by the Department of Justice in 2001, former husbands, boyfriends and cohabitating partners perpetrate 62 percent of stalking incidents against females. It also revealed that of the women, who were stalked by a former or current partner, 81 percent were physically assaulted and 31 percent were sexually assaulted by that same partner.
Florida Statues 784.048(2) addresses cyberstalking as, "any person who willfully, maliciously, and repeatedly follows, harasses, or cyberstalks another person commits the offense of stalking, a misdemeanor of the first degree, punishable by a term not to exceed one year" and F.S. 784.048(3) "any person who willfully, maliciously, and repeatedly follows, harasses, or cyberstalks another person, and makes a credible threat with the intent to place that person in reasonable fear of death or bodily injury of the person, or the person's child, sibling, spouse, parent, or dependent, commits the offense of aggravated stalking, a felony of the third degree, punishable by a term not to exceed 5 years.
As you can see, states are taking this seriously and although it can be a difficult investigation for law enforcement, requiring many hours of diligent investigative work, it is a serious issue and one not to be taken lightly.
Prevention Tips
- Do not share personal information in public spaces anywhere online, including in e-mail or chat rooms.
- Do not use your real name or nickname as your screen name or user ID.
- Pick a name that is gender and age neutral. And do not post personal information as part of any user profiles.
- Be extremely cautious about meeting online acquaintances in person. If you choose to meet, do so in a public place and bring a friend.
- Make sure that your ISP and Internet Relay Chat (IRC) network have an acceptable use policy that prohibits cyberstalking. And if your network fails to respond to your complaints, consider switching to a provider that is more responsive to user complaints.
- If a situation online becomes hostile, log off or surf elsewhere, if a situation places you in fear, contact a local law enforcement agency.
What To Do If You Are Being Cyberstalked
- If you are receiving unwanted contact, make clear to that person that you would like him or her not to contact you again.
- Save all communications for evidence. Do not edit or alter them in any way. Also, keep a record of your contacts with Internet system administrators or law enforcement officials.
- You may want to consider blocking or filtering messages from the harasser. Many e-mail programs such as Eudora and Microsoft Outlook have a filter feature, and software can be easily obtained that will automatically delete e-mails from a particular e-mail address or that contain offensive words. Chat room contact can be blocked as well. However, in some circumstances it may be more appropriate to save the information and contact law enforcement authorities.
- If harassment continues after you have asked the person to stop, contact the harasser's Internet Service Provider. Most ISP's have clear policies prohibiting the use of their services to abuse another person. If the ISP has a website, visit it for information on how to file a complaint.
Contact your local police department and inform them of the situation in as much detail as possible. In appropriate cases, they may refer the matter to state or federal authorities. If you are afraid of taking action, there are resources available to help you, contact the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 800-799-SAFE or 800-787-3224 (TDD).
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