In our social media society it is normal for people to study pages to see what folks are up too and Facebookers who post often stay in the main facebook feed longer so it is easy to follow what they are doing.
Unfortunately, our use of the Internet has the potential to turn ugly. As we integrate technology more and more into our lives, we need to be aware of the potential for cyberharassment, stalking, and Internet addiction. We post pictures in fun as we are living our life, working our business or sharing things that are interesting to us. We rarely spend lots of time thinking like the creepers that are out in the world.
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Flame Wars
When you make comments that controversial, religious, political, or disagreeing in nature get ready for the many views to be posted. You have to be open minded to the fact that everyone has their own thoughts that you may not agree with. -
Avoid sharing personal information
Be extremely cautious about sharing any personal information online. The more someone knows about you, the easier it is to access you online and offline -
Google Yourself
Google yourself to see what you can find on you. You can also set up Google alerts to get emails when someone has posted about you or news articles pops up, even your social media platforms.
Today it is easy for anyone to look you up with just a few searches. Employers use it, friends use it and creepy people use it.
Cyberharassment: This is any type of harassment that happens online, including impersonating the victim on social media sites, spreading rumors about the victim, sharing compromising photos or videos, or pursuing the victim with unwanted emails or instant messages, and or phone calls.
Internet harassment laws make it a criminal act to use the Internet to threaten, torment, stalk, intimidate or otherwise distress a person.
Legal definitions of Internet harassment vary slightly from one region to another, but most jurisdictions agree on the basic principles. Internet harassment is an attempt to use email or another form of electronic communication to torment, threaten, stalk or perform some similar act that would cause distress to a reasonable person. When determining the difference between simple rudeness and criminal harassment, authorities are likely to consider issues such as the attacker’s apparent intent, the frequency of the remarks or postings, evidence of premeditation or information gathering, whether others were encouraged to participate in these acts and whether remarks or attacks were directed specifically at the victim.
Learning how to use social media the correct way is very important. You are reaching out to the world with lots of people who have different views that you do.
Understand that when someone begins harassing you online or calling your personal phone 7 times a day with a hidden phone number, showing up in your surroundings there are legal actions that can be taken.
They tracked you down and they can be tracked as well using the internet.
Some people start out with good intentions that go sour by continuing communication once someone has told them to stop. Gets creepy, dangerous and illegal.
Wise advice: Stop means stop, your opinion is your own, and know that safety is a must.