Is Cyber Harassment Considered A Cyber Crime?

Harassment, even on the Internet, is a crime. So, harassment via the Internet is a cyber crime. Law enforcement agencies have estimated that electronic communications are a factor in 20 to 40 percent of all stalking cases.

Forty-six states now have laws that explicitly include electronic forms of communication within stalking or harassment laws.

However, this is the type of cyber crime that is largely handled on the local or state level. On the federal level, there is language in the Communications Decency Act of 1996. There is also language in the Violence Against Women Act, passed in 2000, that made cyberstalking a part of the federal interstate stalking statute.

The first U.S. cyber crime harassment law went into effect in 1999 in California. Forty-six states now have laws that include measures against cyber harassment or stalking. Each state has their own variation on cyber harassment laws, so do some research on your home state.

The U.S. Department of Justice has recommendations if you are the victim of cyber harassment:

First make it clear to the perpetrator that you want them to cease communication.

Save all communications with the perpetrator to use as evidence in a cyber crime case. Do not alter them in any way.

While there is software that can block communications from unwanted outside sources, this may only be a short-term fix to the problem. Contact your local police department and inform them of the cyber crime as soon as possible, particularly if you think you may be in danger.

One notable advancement on cyber crime harassment laws is in Missouri where a teenage girl committed suicide after being teased over the Internet. The state lawmakers approved a bill making cyber harassment illegal in May, 2008. The bill removed the requirement that the communication must be written or over the telephone.