Stalking self-help

Simple Harassment Guidelines

Simple online harassment is a very common occurrence on the Internet. Generally, harassment occurs when one user continually or deliberately offends another user with actions such as flaming or posting comments intended to hurt, offend or conflict with another user's beliefs.

Sometimes, people with a need for attention will join a particular discussion group(s) for the sole purpose of creating as much discord and havoc as possible. While this can be very bothersome and sometimes frightening for the other members, there is no real danger involved if the harassment remains at this level.

If you are being harassed online, you should first try to report the harassment to the moderator of the group or the owner of the site. However, there are places on the internet, such as some chat rooms and newsgroups that either do not moderate postings or will not take any action against a user except under extreme circumstances.

Many times, this is true even if the offending behavior violates the site's Terms of Service (TOS) agreement. Usually, site owners or moderators will simply ban the offender from the site. This may work for a time, but most offenders who are banned will immediately rejoin using another nick or screen name in order to continue the harassment.

It is best to not respond to a harasser, no matter how badly he or she provokes you. Remember, harassers are looking for attention, either positive or negative. If you respond, the harasser may escalate his behaviour in order to get you to respond again and thus give him the attention he craves.

If the harassment continues despite your best efforts of ignoring the harasser, you should leave the site where the problem is occuring. Sometimes removing yourself as a target is the best way to prevent the harassment from worsening or escalating.

Many people that engage in offensive online behaviour at one site can also be found disrupting other sites. Again, the best course of action is to simply leave the site without responding to the harassment.

For further information on how NOT to become a victim of online harassment, please review our Guidelines to Safe Surfing at WiredSafety's Internet 101.

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