Dangers Online

A. Fatal attraction is a real danger online… Yes, the stalking and erotimania behaviors seen in the classic movie, Fatal Attraction, or the new version, Obsessed, are real and on the increase. Cyber-stalking makes it easier to harass from a distance or to get information on where stalkers can locate victims at almost any hour of the day. For college students, stalkers get a bonus; just keep up with information on Twitter, MySpace or Facebook. Social networking sites offer privacy options that few users seem to engage. What is it about the social networking generation that is unaware of the harmful potential of giving too much detailed life information?

Basically, what you post online can be seen by anyone. I think everyone should be educated on internet risks and dangers of internet predators. When creating a social media account, information that is input is viewed by the public unless privacy settings are adjusted. Some information like your phone number, marital status, or birthday doesn’t show if adjusted. There are also computer hackers out there in cyberspace. Spyware may be installed on some public computers.

According to the United States Department of Justice: US Attorney’s Office, one of the biggest risk online is sharing information with people that you don’t personally know. You should avoid sharing information like your address, phone number, family members names, school names, drivers license number, insurance policy, credit/debit card numbers and bank accounts. Beware of posting photos from smart phones. Photo’s taken with these phones embed the GPS Coordinates in the photo, which allow users to get your location. Beware of opening emails from unknown people or sources. Clicking on these links or downloading attachments can infect your computer with a virus or subject you to fraud, malware, or a scam. Beware of meeting people in person that you have met on the internet. Some people are not honest about who they are, their age, or gender. Apply parent controls on your computer and smart phones to limit the internet to safe websites. Web cams can be high jacked and turned on remotely, this allows others to illegally listen and view others without their knowledge.

Gosselin, D.K (2010). Stalking and Homicide. Pearson Education, Inc. Heavy Hands: An Introduction to the Crimes of Family Violence (4th Ed)(pg. 303-304) Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Prentice Hall

http://www.justice.gov/usao/gan/programs/internetsafety/ http://www.understandmedia.com/pdf/SJMLE-Vol1.pdf B. From obsession to confrontation what can be done? Stalking behaviors are typically the obsession of an individual to be near a person when that person does not return the affection. Stalking is not a crime in all 50 states; however, victims' early pleas for help are largely unanswered. As a stalking victim once said to me, "I told the police about the letters, emails, the notes on my car. Then I showed them the last note saying 'do I have to smack you down to let you know I'm there'. Smack me with what? A fist or the bumper of a van? I'm scared but they tell me, 'this proves nothing'. If I'm killed by this freak, will you testify so that my voice will finally be heard?" How can a stalking victim protect him/herself? Are there any early signs that an acquaintance might turn into a stalker?

A stalking victim can protect theriselves in many ways. Doreen Orion, author of I Know You Really Love Me, suggests that stalking victims must acknowledge being a target of this crime and take extra safety precauions (Orion, 1998). Some of the commonsense approaches she suggest for persons who suspect that they may be targeted by a stalker are:

Getting a dog or getting an alarm system to reduce the feeling of vulnerability.
Never give your address or telephone number out.
Document everything. Keep all voicemails, letters, gifts, etc.
If you think you are being followed while in the car, drive to the police station- never drive home or to a friend.
Never be afraid to blow the horn to attract attention if in danger.
Park in lit areas and lock doors.
Equip car with alarm.

An acquaintance stalker is when the stalker knows the victim casually. They may be co-workers or neighbors, or they may have a friendship (Gosselin, 2010, pg.306)
From experience, I know that there are early warning signs that an acquaintance might turn into an stalker. I think early signs would include turning an person down that is obsess with a man/woman; signs of jealously; unwanted gifts; obscene phone calls; damaging one’s property; threats are being made; and being resentful.

According to Gosselin (2010,pg. 305), The Secret Service provided the following findings about the histories and personal characteristics of attackers and their near-lethal approaches (Fein & Vossekuil, 1998):

Almost half had attended college or graduate school.
They often had histories of mobility and transience.
About two- thirds were described as socially isolated.
Few had histories of arrests for violent crimes or for crimes that involved weapons.
Many had histories of harassing other people.
Most had histories of explosive, angry behavior, but only half had histories of physically violent behavior.
Many had histories of serious depression or despair.
Many were known to have attempted suicide or to have considered suicide at some point before their attack or near- lethal approach.

This information suggests that stalkers are generally intelligent, have violent or deviant pasts, and suffer from emotional and behavior disorders. Revenge and the need for vindication may motivate them (Gosselin, 2010, pg. 306). Most stalking victims are targeted by someone they know. Males, rather than females, are more likely to be the targets of a stranger stalker.

Gosselin, D.K (2010). Stalking and Homicide. Pearson Education, Inc. Heavy Hands: An Introduction to the Crimes of Family Violence (4th Ed)(pg. 304-306) Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Prentice Hall

http://homepage.psy.utexas.edu/homepage/Group/BussLAB/stalkinghelp/StalkingWhatCanI.htmlStrategies

C Myths vs. Realities: In media and conversations, we hear "myth vs. reality" statements about victims, perpetrators and witnesses. Develop a "myth vs. reality" statement about one of these groups. Offer any resource information used to formulate your statement...

Myth: Women are not batterers.

Reality: Women assault male partners at about the same rate as men.

Major studies on dating violence find that women are both victims and perpetrators of physical dating violence at the same or higher rate than men (Medeiros & Straus, 2006). This does not mean that couples engage in mutual combat, but that either person in the relationship may instigate violence at one time or another as a response to situations, regardless of gender. Women self- reported physical assaults against their partner at a rate of 32 percent vs. 29 percent for males (Straus & Ramirez, 2007).

Advocates and practitioners claim that women who use force in their intimate partner relationships are victims of violence who respond through self defense and retaliatory use of force (Larance, 2006). Researchers also claim that there is a tendency to dismiss male victimization by women because there is less of it (Dutton & Nicholls, 2005).

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/12/01/women-raping-men-a-surviv_n_2224204.html
Gosselin, D.K (2010). The Police Response to Intimate Partner Violence. Pearson Education, Inc. Heavy Hands: An Introduction to the Crimes of Family Violence (4th Ed)(pg. 294-295, pg.262).Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Prentice Hall