Synopsis
The recent case in Bengaluru reveals growing concerns around digital and offline stalking, where advancements in technology have made it easier to track and intimidate individuals. This article explores modern stalking methods, personal safety measures, and the legal protections available in India.
The recent horrific episode which happened in Bengaluru, where a woman broke up with her boyfriend and alleged he was tracking her through a food delivery app, has raised several questions about digital privacy and the new age of stalking. This issue explains how stalking online and offline has developed, whether the law has responded adequately to these activities, and what people can do to protect themselves. Here’s a closer look at these dimensions..
Ways to Stalk Someone: Modern Techniques
1. Online Stalking
Cyberstalking, also known as online stalking, works with computer tools to watch the activities of their victims’ online activities and follow up with their daily movements and details. Some common methods include:
- Social Media Surveillance: Social Media Surveillance is common. Stalkers monitor a social media feed to obtain places, recent activities, friends, etc. Although many people use geotagged posts and stories, they expose themselves to stalkers who can track their movements in real time.
- Application Misuse: Looking at the event in Bengaluru, anyone who proves favourable to get into the apps or company data can track someone’s location or action.
- Spyware and Hacking: Stalkers seize the time to install spyware on the victim’s device physically, and then they can monitor the victim’s emails, messages, and even the victim’s live location. The other way stalkers gain account control is through brute force, guesswork, or phishing, thus permitting the stalker to encroach on the victim’s digital existence.
- Public Information Retrieval: Thus, public databases (voters, real estate) may contain distorted information that stalkers also can use, but not as often as in traditional instances.
2. Offline Stalking
- Physical Surveillance: The old style involves physically following the victim around, likely at his workplace, home, or other regularly visited places. Closely stalkers may intrude into the victim’s personal space and accompany them during their everyday activities; distant stalkers may also merely observe the victims.
- Hiring Third Parties: At a more severe level, stalkers may hire detectives or use friends or even relatives of the victim to gather information or report on the victim’s movement patterns.
- Leaving Notes or Gifts: Letters, gifts, or other reminders that turn up unexpectedly often have intimidating implications. This is especially true in cases involving persons who want to reconnect or regain control over the victim.
Protection Measures: Safeguarding Against Stalking
Digital Safety Practices
- Restrict Location Sharing: Bypassing general location services in applications, including social media platforms, reduces the chances of users sharing their current real-time locations. People should also refrain from Tweeting live updates, like Check-Ins if they are in a precarious situation or status.
- Secure Accounts: To protect against account breaches, use strong and specific passwords, turn on two-factor authentication, and restrict app access. Another schedule change is to review the permissions a mobile app requests occasionally.
- Monitor Suspicious Activity: It is always good practice to look for signs of unauthorized entries, especially on social media and email accounts, to see if someone is attempting to breach an account. The notification also eliminates the possibility of misuse by service providers.
- Use Privacy Tools: To prevent stalking, using privacy settings on social networks and turning off geotags will help decrease the amount of information that a stalker can gather on a potential victim.
Physical Safety Measures
- Be Vigilant: In this case, try finding a safe zone to help you meet other people, maybe some policemen. Informing friends or relatives over movement can also be useful.
- Secure Personal Information: Avoid requesting phone numbers, addresses, and other personal details and change routines, as this will act as a measure of actualizing stalking.
Legal Recourse and Stalking Laws in India
India has stringent laws to address both physical and cyberstalking, particularly after high-profile cases raised awareness. Key provisions include:
- Section 354D of the Indian Penal Code (IPC): This law also makes stalking a criminal offence, explaining it as following or seeking to communicate with a person without their consent. Anyone found guilty, it will be his first time, is punishable by imprisonment up to three years; those found guilty for more than one time shall be punished with imprisonment for a term of up to five years with a fine.
- Information Technology (IT) Act, 2000: Different provisions of the IT Act regulate cyberstalking. This is altogether special, although we can discover sections 66E and 67 that regulate invasions of privacy, like capturing and transmitting photos without permission. Section 67 also makes anything made electronically or by computer obscene, which usually surfaces during harassment instances.
- Sections 503 and 507 of the IPC concern criminal intimidation and threats, particularly when made anonymously or by using communication instruments. If the desired intent is to spread fear or coercion, this can be done online or offline.
Real-World Cases of Stalking in India
- Delhi Stalking Case (2020): An example is a woman in Delhi who was subjected to stalking by a stranger who was once known to her; he wanted her to meet and have sex with her. Otherwise, he would post her pictures of virginity tests online. This, of course, was evidenced in the case where the general idea of cyberstalking involved the use of intimidation and harassment.
- Mumbai Celebrity Case: A Mumbai-based actor says she was being stalked by a man who was following her on her social media posts and tried to meet her physically several times, which forced her to seek police protection and legal action.
Conclusion
Stalking, especially in the modern world, is quite complex because stalkers can easily access private details. In India, there are very strong legal provisions for physical and cyberstalking, but the problem lies in implementing those laws effectively, and this happens mostly based on the knowledge of the victim and also their willingness to report the crime. Cybersecurity generally encompasses digital awareness, security measures and legal protection. Stalking can be greatly minimized by ensuring that one updates them on the new privacy settings, avoids sharing too much information about oneself, and always looks for strange incidents.
FAQs
1. What are some common ways people can be stalked today?
Modern stalking includes online methods like social media tracking, spyware, and unauthorized data access, along with traditional methods such as physical following and surveillance.
2. How can I protect myself from online stalking?
You can protect yourself by restricting location sharing on apps, using strong passwords, enabling two-factor authentication, and monitoring account activity regularly.
3. What legal protections are available against stalking in India?
India’s laws on stalking include Section 354D of the IPC for physical stalking, Sections 66E and 67 of the IT Act for cyberstalking, and additional provisions for intimidation. Punishments can extend to imprisonment and fines.
4. Can I report stalking to authorities without revealing my identity?
Yes, India’s cyber cells and the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal allow individuals to report incidents, and in cases involving women, reports can be filed confidentially through the National Commission for Women.
