Online Abuse

 

What is Online Abuse?

Online abuse covers a wide range of behaviours and technologies. Abuse happens when someone acts in a way that causes harm and distress to others. It is often obvious that someone is behaving in an abusive way but it’s not always clear where the boundary falls between expressing a point of view and being abusive.

Online abuse is any type of abuse that happens on the internet, through social media, online gaming or mobile phones. Children and young people may be the victims of online grooming, sexual abuse, sexual exploitation or emotional abuse. They also may be exposed to sexting, online misrepresentation and cyberbullying.

Since everything come online due to COVID 19 pandemic the rate of online abuse is also increased. A lot of cases been seen through various social medias and even the teachers are getting abused through online classes.

There are 7 types of online abuse:

Type 1: Cyberstalking

Cyberstalking is when someone uses the internet to systematically and repeatedly harass, threaten or intimidate someone. There are many ways this can be done. Some popular forms are through email, social media or chat rooms.

To be safe, you should also block the cyberstalker on all social media accounts. You should also change your email and passwords to keep your information safe.

Type 2: Online Impersonation

Online impersonation is when someone uses the name or persona of someone online without their consent with the intent to harm, intimidate, defraud or threaten the person.

This has become popular in the form of fake social media accounts or phishing schemes. Phishing schemes have become very detrimental to businesses, increasing by 65% in 2017 and costing mid-sized companies an average of $1.6 million.

Online impersonation can be tried as infringement to a person’s identity. If it seriously damages the person’s reputation (and it’s documented) it can be prosecuted in criminal law.

Type 3: Catfishing

Catfishing is when someone on the internet creates a fictitious identity for the purpose of starting a relationship. This scam has become more and more common in the age of online dating.

The most popular case of this was when Manti Te’o, a football star, was catfished by his girlfriend. She supposedly died from leukemia mid-season which got a lot of media coverage. It was later determined that the girlfriend never existed but was faked.

Catfishing is not illegal. If it leads to more serious issues, such as a transfer of money, it may turn into a different crime.

Type 4: Doxxing

Doxxing is someone’s personal information is published online with the intention of others harassing them. This could include anything from their address to phone number to information about their family.

Doxxing happens a lot in the gaming world. The most famous example is the Gamergate incident of 2014. Zoe Quinn, a video game developer, was publicly accused of sleeping with a journalist to get a review. Her ex released her address and she was harassed online and in person.

Type 5: Swatting

Often times doxxing can lead to swatting. Swatting is when someone’s personal information such as an adresse is released and there is a call made to law enforcement about a made-up dangerous scenario. The SWAT team arrives at the target’s location due to this fake call. This scenario is very dangerous and is used as a scare tactic for the target and their family.

Type 6: Trolling

Trolling is when someone makes unsolicited comments in an online community that are random or controversial, in order to provoke emotion. These people are called “trolls.” A troll can cause a fight or upset people while hiding behind the safety of their screen.

There are many types of trolling on the internet. Some are mild while others are more serious and severe. In one variation, the person acts as a fan or supported and then gives constructive criticism to show their hostility. Another one is called “gaslighting.” When someone is gaslighting they present a false narrative or information to make the person doubt their reality.

Type 7: Revenge Porn

The term “revenge porn” refers to nonconsensual pornography and the act of distributing private, sexually explicit images or videos without the person’s consent. More often than not, this is done as a form of revenge. It can be both extremely invasive and traumatic. Nonconsensual pornography of this nature can stem from sexting, which is when people text each other nude photos. If these photos are unwanted or get into the hands of someone they aren’t intended for, it can lead to a revenge porn case.

Post a comment after reading!