MissMorrigan
Posts: 2309
Joined: 1/15/2005 Status: offline
|
I think the term 'cyber stalker' is generally misused. Quite often, we talk with so many different people online that it's little wonder we come across those that seem 'familiar' to us (I'm not saying this is what has happened in your case, you know better than anyone if it's the same person or not). It's also possible that on site ssuch as this we'll encounter those who have changed their profiles repeatedly. It's easy to socially engineer yourself online - it's often a person's only outlet in life. As for stalking itself, it's not fun. I had an American cyberstalker for years. I used to frequent a chat room in the Dallas section of Yahoo Chat as I once lived in Austin/Dallas and found it was a quick/easy/cheap way to keep in contact with many I had met. One day, a guy came in and began berating everyone, just being a dick and I asked him why he felt so empowered by such silly online behaviour... From that day on he made my online life a misery. I've often read comments from people who have taken the high ground and stated, "Dont allow others online to have effect on your personal emotional life"... Easier said than done. This guy had set a team of script kiddies on my case, who revelled at using every boot program available to not only gain my msn/yahoo passwords by using a program that grabbed my IP and got him instant access to those accounts, but also every contact on those lists - family, friends, etc... Thankfully, I had two IPs as I kept my business separate from my home life (thank goodness!), so he couldn't wreak havoc with that. He and his team of useless articles then spent their time logging movement I made from the moment I connected to the internet each day. Even changing my IP made no difference b/c they quickly had the new one again the moment I used any site/messenger I was affiliated with. As a result of the above, I am no longer in contact with ANY of those I had become friends with, due to the persistent harassment caused by that individual and his cronies, who took delight in taking their personal contact information and running rampant with it. As for people emailing with a simple 'hello', if that what is considered 'cyber stalking' you've led a very sheltered life!
_____________________________
The Tooth Fairy who teaches kids to sell body parts for money. A free society is a society where it is safe to find one's self unpopular and where history has shown that exceptions are not that exceptional.
|