Cyberstalking vs Cyberbullying vs Cyber Harassment: What’s the Difference?

According to Pew Research, 41% of Americans have experienced some form of online harassment – and the severity of incidents has been getting worse over time. Understanding what different types of online harassment look like, and what behaviors harassers engage in, can help you recognize and address it.

Keep reading to learn about the different types of online harassment, consequences of online harassment and how to avoid becoming a target.

Defining Cyberstalking, Cyberbullying and Cyber Harassment

The differences between cyberstalking, cyberbullying and cyber harassment depend on the level of severity, frequency and legality of the associated behaviors.

Cyberstalking

Cyberstalking is a type of stalking conducted using technology. It’s characterized by repeated unwanted messages, using technology to monitor the victim’s activities and location, threats to expose confidential information and threats to the victim’s safety.

Behavior crosses over the line into cyberstalking if it causes the victim to reasonably fear for their own safety or the safety of others. Examples of cyberstalking include someone who sends repeated messages with threats to physical safety, or someone who hides a GPS tracker in someone’s bag in order to monitor their location. 

Cyberbullying

Cyberbullying is a term most often used in the context of children and teenagers, especially at school, although it can also be applied to adults. Cyberbullying describes a broader set of online behaviors than cyberstalking and can include one-time incidents. These behaviors include offensive name-calling and embarrassment. 

For example, someone using social media to spread mean memes about another student could be considered a cyberbully. It is characterized by creating a hostile environment at school for victims, causing low self-esteem and other mental health consequences.

Cyber harassment

Cyber harassment, interchangeably used with “online harassment,” is the broadest of these three terms. Cyberstalking and cyberbullying fall under the umbrella of cyber harassment. It can refer to any kind of inappropriate, mean or uncomfortable online behavior. Sometimes cyber harassment is also used to describe the same behavior as cyberbullying if the victim is an adult. 

It could be considered cyber harassment if a social media user goes to the public account of a media figure to write rude comments on their post, but it’s unlikely to be considered cyberstalking or cyberbullying. Behavior like this could, however, escalate and start to include more harmful behaviors like threats or monitoring online activity, which is why it’s wise to block anyone who behaves rudely to you online.

Is cyberstalking, cyberbullying or cyber harassment illegal?

Several online harassment behaviors are considered illegal on a state or federal level. It’s important to be aware that cyberstalking, cyberbullying and cyber harassment are used to describe both legal and illegal behaviors. The legal definition of these terms may vary depending on jurisdiction.

Cyberstalking, as defined by the United States, is federally illegal. Many states also have their own laws that expand on the federal laws. 

Several states, but not all, have laws that address cyberbullying, especially among students at public schools. Usually, such laws state that behaviors cross the line into illegal cyberbullying if they cause a hostile school environment or otherwise affect the victim’s education or well-being. These laws are likely to authorize schools to punish cyberbullying by suspension, expulsion or other reasonable consequences.

Cyberstalking	Cyberbullying	Cyber Harassment
Refers to repeated, unwanted messages and monitoring of activity using technology.	Usually refers to behavior in children and teenagers ranging from one-time incidents to repeated bullying.	Broadest term – refers to any kind of uncomfortable online behavior and includes cyberstalking and cyberbullying.
Makes the victim fear for their safety.	Creates a hostile environment at school and intrudes on the victim’s ability to learn.	May or may not make the victim feel threatened.
Illegal on a federal level; states may have additional laws.	Many states have laws that permit schools to punish cyberbullying with suspension or expulsion.	Some cyber harassment behaviors may be illegal under cyberstalking and cyberbullying laws.

Consequences of Online Harassment

All forms of online harassment can have serious consequences for victims. The Pew Research report reflected that a significant percentage of Americans who experienced some form of online harassment found the incident upsetting. Research shows that victims can experience severe mental health consequences, including depression, anxiety, low self-esteem and more. Harassment that includes threats can even cause PTSD for victims.

The studies highlights the need for adult education on safe technology use to prevent online harassment.

How to Avoid Becoming a Target of Online Harassment

To help prevent online harassment, you can follow these best practices to keep your data safe online and your personal information private:

1. Use strong, unique passwords for every account

Cyberstalkers commonly hack online accounts and steal personal information including files and images. Cyberstalkers use what they find to threaten victims with exposure of confidential information and to track the victim’s activities and location.

Even one compromised account can expose a lot – for example, if a cyberstalker hacks into your email account, they would be able to find information about your location and your upcoming plans. They might also be able to find documents with sensitive information. 

Using strong, unique passwords for every account is critical to protect you from cyberstalkers. You should use passwords that are at least 16 characters long with a mix of numbers, letters and symbols.

For a streamlined way to generate and store strong passwords for your accounts, you should use a password manager. A password manager can automatically generate strong passwords and store them in your encrypted digital vault. Your vault is only accessible to you with the use of your master password, which is the only password you will need to remember. 

2. Keep social media accounts private

Social media is where a significant portion of online harassment occurs, according to Pew Research’s study. To reduce potential harassment, you should keep your accounts private and only allow people you know to follow you. If anyone exhibits behavior that makes you feel uncomfortable, block them before it escalates.

3. Clean up your digital footprint

Your digital footprint is all the data people can find about you online by simply searching your name in Google or other browsers. This includes news items, government records and people-finder website results. Your digital footprint can allow online harassers to find Personally Identifiable Information (PII) which can enable them to harass you in other ways. For example, if they find your phone number they can start making unwanted calls and leaving threatening voicemails.

4. Don’t overshare online

It’s easy to forget that your information can be used against you. Sharing personal information in online environments, such as social media or online video games, can give potential cyberstalkers a tool they can use to help them target you. For example, details about your life could give away the answers to security questions. If someone can guess your security questions, it makes it more likely that they can hack into your accounts.

Protect Yourself From Online Harassment

Online harassment is never the fault of the victim, and legal intervention may be necessary to stop persistent cyberstalkers. However, using best practices to shield your private data can help impede cyberstalkers and mitigate the damage they can cause.

If there’s one thing you should do today to protect your online accounts it’s download a password manager to store your sensitive information and give each of your online accounts a strong, unique password.

Keeper password manager is a leading solution that makes it easy to manage and protect passwords as well as sensitive files and information. Start your 30-day free trial to see how it can help you protect and secure your digital life.