Online harassment and cyberstalking
What are online threats, harassment, stalking, and abuse?
Online threats, harassment, stalking and abuse are the methods cybercriminals use to target, intimidate, or bully people of all ages through the internet — including repeatedly contacting or humiliating someone, monitoring or tracking their activity without permission, sharing or threatening to share intimate images or personal content without consent, or building a relationship with someone to manipulate or exploit them.
Get help with online threats, harassment, stalking, or abuse now
Read our step-by-step guides to learn about, recover from, and contain online threats, harassment, stalking, and abuse.
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Online harassment and bullying
You're being bullied, harassed, or targeted online through abusive messages, comments, trolling, or repeated unwanted contact.
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Cyberstalking
An individual is stalking you online and making severe threats to your personal safety.
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Outing
Someone has shared personal information about you online without your consent. This could be sharing a secret, personal details or sensitive images.
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Fake profiles
Fake profiles are being created to bully or harass you online. This also covers what to do when someone has created a fake profile impersonating you to cause you distress.
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Unauthorised account access (fraping)
Someone has accessed your social media account and has posted messages that cause you emotional distress or reputation damage.
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Catfishing / Romance Fraud
You suspect that someone is pretending to be someone they are not to build a romantic relationship with you.
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Online grooming
You - or someone you know - is a minor and being groomed online.
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Inappropriate content
You have seen inappropriate content such as hate speech, offensive content or adult content aimed at children or vulnerable users. This guide also cover social medial ‘challenges’ that aim to cause harm to individuals.
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Intimate image abuse (revenge porn)
Someone has shared, or is threatening to share, sexually explicit images or videos of you without your permission.
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Digital surveillance
Someone is monitoring you without your knowledge or consent — listening to your conversations, watching you through a device's camera, or tracking your location.
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I’m not sure what's happened, but something isn't right
Our free helpline helps individuals and sole traders understand, contain, and recover from cyber attacks and incidents.
Speak to an expert
Some cybercrime cases require a helping hand or further investigation. If you have spoken to our chatbot, read our guides, and still need more help with your issue, our chatbot can connect you to a real cybersecurity expert.
*Please note our volunteer helpline service is currently only available if you live in the UK or USA. We aim to get back to your request within 3 days.
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If you are located in the United States, we have specific guides tailored to your region
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