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Cyber harassment

Cyber harassment

Cyber harassment definition

Cyber harassment is a tactic used to repeatedly offend, annoy, attack, threaten, or verbally abuse a victim using digital means with the intention to cause distress and harm.

Cyber harassment examples

  • Trolling is when perpetrators trudge through forums and social media producing a barrage of negative comments to provoke or offend their victims.
  • In online sexual harassment, perpetrators send unwanted sexual messages, demand intimate photos, openly objectify their targets in the comments, or even blackmail their victims.
  • In swatting, perpetrators trick an emergency service into sending armed personnel to the victim’s address. This is a life-threatening crime that in 2017, resulted in a victim’s death when a police officer shot and killed a man as a result of swatting.

Stopping cyber harassment

  • Report inappropriate comments and messages to the platform they’re on.
  • Document the harassment and keep the evidence as proof.
  • Limit the information about yourself online.
  • Consider reporting the predators to the authorities.
  • Find support groups in your country or online to help with your case.

Further reading

Ultimate digital security