Cyber technology impacts interactions between offenders and victims, because oftentimes offenders will use technology as another means of unwanted communication with the victim. With technology and communication advancements cyberstalking and cyber harassment have come into existence and caused problems all over the world. Cyber-harassment can be defined as offending, threatening, tormenting or terrorizing someone using email, messaging, etc in hopes of harming them. Cyber stalking is when an individual pursues another person repeatedly using the internet and internet related devices regardless of type. Stalking in any form creates fear from lack of security, loss of control, stress, and anxiety in the victim so it is important to have clear rules and definitions to ensure there is justice no matter what form of stalking it is. While offenders have been able to abuse technology for devious means like stalking and harrassing, there is an aspect that victims can use to their advantage. Within the last 10 years variety in social media and communication platforms have skyrocketed. In addition to that a greater user demographic has occurred as well. Creators of these various platforms and apps recognize there has to be some priority for the safety of their users so updates to terms of service and new features have been created to enhance consumer use and increase safety. Some examples of this include multiple steps to confirm identity (in hopes of decreasing fraud and fake/spam accounts), notifications of who views your profile to better monitor stalking, modes to keep messages from getting deleted, privacy settings for social media accounts, screenshots functions, and space to store information in the event one may fall victim to cyber stalking or harassment. Even though these are benefits for consumers and provide means of proof the victim can use it can be frustrating and tedious and the blame and work should not be placed on the victim.
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