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How can you protect yourself if your spouse cyberstalks you?

On Behalf of | Jan 25, 2018 | Domestic Violence

If you are a Texas resident who has been the victim of domestic abuse, you may have gotten an order of protection against your spouse. You may even have moved to a new home, gotten a new job and filed for divorce. Nevertheless, you may have the feeling that your soon-to-be former spouse has not accepted this new situation and in fact is stalking you, particularly cyberstalking you.

Attn.com reports that the advent of technology has made it far too easy for someone to stalk you via the internet, often without your even knowing it. In the United States, approximately 7.5 million people are stalked every year according to the Stalking Resource Center. The Bureau of Justice Statistics adds that nearly 25 percent of these stalking victims say that cyberstalking is the method of choice for their abusers.

Protecting yourself against cyberstalking

The problem with cyberstalkers is two-fold. Not only do they have numerous technological ways of feeding their obsession with you, you often inadvertently help them by means of the things you post on social media. Experts recommend that you be very careful about what types of information you divulge on Facebook and other social media outlets.

For instance, never post a photo of your new boyfriend or girlfriend. Never divulge where you are going or how long you will be there. In fact, think very carefully about what information could be a possible trigger for your stalker before posting anything at all. In addition, review everything you have posted so far and delete anything that could pose a trigger.

Other actions you should take include the following:

  • Set up a new email account.
  • Update all your passwords, particularly those associated with your online banking, credit card accounts, etc. Be sure to use unique “strong” passwords that your stalker will not be likely to figure out.
  • Make accessing your computer files and smartphone accounts a two-step authentication process.
  • Install a good antivirus program on your computer and run it on a daily basis.

This is general information only. It is not intended to provide legal advice.

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