Face it, we live in a digital age and as such we\u2019ve found ourselves losing a great deal of the privacy that we used to enjoy as human beings. Now that we\u2019ve opened ourselves up online, certain consequences may follow. Too often that consequence comes in the form of thousands of cheesy horror movie ideas: the cyber stalker.<\/p>\n
You\u2019ve seen it before in bad Lifetime movies, old anime films, or even from the lips of an acquaintance. The protagonist of the story begins receiving messages from an unknown source, each one creepier and more bizarre than the last. Sometimes the stalker sends pictures\u00a0or threatens to leak sensitive information.<\/p>\n
Either way, it\u2019s not something you should ever have to deal with. Here are a few tips on how to make sure that your life doesn\u2019t become a Dateline special:<\/p>\n\n
In your quest to become Insta-famous, always remember that some things need to stay private. Information like your home address, your personal email address, your private phone number, and your social media passwords could be hazardous in the wrong hands. It\u2019s important to make sure that you\u2019re not sharing those online.<\/p>\n
Sometimes, scummy websites allow potential stalkers to reverse email address search in order to find out some of your information. Countless others farm your information and sell it to the highest bidders, or you could be the victim of a Trojan attack.<\/p>\n
If you sense your information is at risk of being stalker-nabbed, make sure to change your passwords and take down anything that might reveal where you could be.<\/p>\n\n
If you put yourself out there on the internet, you\u2019re bound to garner some negative attention every now and then, whether or not you feel you deserve it. A lot of times people will leave hurtful comments just because they can, or simply because hiding behind a computer screen makes them feel bigger.<\/p>\n
If you receive excessively harsh comments, don\u2019t play into the poster\u2019s hands and comment back. That\u2019s exactly what they want you to do, and it opens up a whole can of worms that should just stay closed. Let them play their little games alone.<\/p>\n\n
Cyberstalkers are looking for reasons to defraud and defame you. They want every little bit of dirty laundry you have to air. It\u2019s important to make sure that you\u2019re not egging it on by trying to fight fire with fire.<\/p>\n
Stalkers aren\u2019t the kind to stop if you start bullying as well. If anything, they will double down and try to destroy you even harder. If you can\u2019t get them to stop with nice words, enlist legal help instead of trying to handle things yourself.<\/p>\n\n
Make sure to take a log of everything. Due to the social nature of the internet, laws have been and are being passed to protect people from cyber-stalkers and other forms of online harassment.<\/p>\n
If you\u2019re being harassed online, make sure to take screenshots at every chance, keep every email, and copy down every mean or creepy comment. If you have proof, you can be protected. If you don\u2019t keep a paper trail, they can\u2019t do anything about it, unfortunately. Every little thing you keep is a step in the right direction for you.<\/p>\n\n