Digital Safety: Protecting Yourself Online

The internet has changed how predators operate. They no longer need physical proximity to find, study, and manipulate victims. From the comfort of their homes, they can research potential targets, build false relationships, and gather information that makes future crimes easier to commit.

Digital safety is now as important as physical safety. The information you share online, the people you interact with, and the privacy settings you choose all affect your vulnerability to those who mean harm.

How Predators Use the Internet

Understanding how predators operate online is the first step toward protecting yourself.

Information Gathering

Social media profiles reveal enormous amounts of personal information. Your hometown, workplace, school, daily routines, relationship status, and physical appearance are often publicly visible. Predators compile this information to identify vulnerable targets and plan approaches.

Check-ins and location tags reveal where you spend time. Photos reveal who you spend time with. Status updates reveal your emotional state. All of this information can be weaponized.

Building Fake Relationships

Online predators often spend weeks or months building trust before making harmful moves. They may pose as romantic interests, supportive friends, or helpful professionals. They match your interests, validate your feelings, and present themselves as understanding allies.

This process mirrors offline grooming behavior but happens faster and reaches more potential victims. A predator can simultaneously cultivate relationships with dozens of targets, investing more energy in those who respond positively.

Escalation Tactics

Once trust is established, predators escalate. They may request personal information, photos, or money. They may suggest meeting in person. They may become possessive or demanding. The early supportive behavior gives way to manipulation and control.

By this point, victims often feel emotionally invested in the relationship. They make excuses for concerning behavior. They hesitate to cut contact because they have shared personal information or developed genuine feelings.

Protecting Your Information

Reducing your digital footprint reduces your vulnerability.

Audit Your Social Media

Review every social media profile you maintain. Look at it from the perspective of a stranger seeking to learn about you. What can they discover?

Consider setting profiles to private so only approved connections can see your information. Remove or restrict old posts that reveal too much. Disable location services for social media apps. Think twice before posting real-time updates about your whereabouts.

Separate Your Online Identities

Using the same username across multiple platforms makes it easy to link your activities. Someone who finds you on Instagram can search that username to find your Twitter, LinkedIn, dating profiles, and forum posts.

Consider using different usernames for different purposes. Use email addresses that do not contain your real name. Keep your professional and personal online presences separate.

Be Careful with Photos

Images contain hidden data called metadata. This data may include the date, time, and GPS coordinates where the photo was taken. Before posting photos, strip this metadata or disable location embedding on your phone.

Reverse image search tools allow anyone to take a photo and find other places it appears online. A photo you post on a dating app can be traced back to your social media profiles. Consider this connection before sharing images.

Recognizing Online Predators

Certain behaviors should raise immediate concern.

Moving Too Fast

Online relationships that become intensely personal very quickly warrant suspicion. Declarations of love from people you have never met, pressure to share personal information early, and attempts to isolate you from other relationships are warning signs.

Real connections develop over time. Someone who pushes for immediate intimacy may have ulterior motives.

Inconsistencies

Pay attention when stories do not add up. Details that change, excuses that multiply, and reluctance to video chat or meet in person suggest the person may not be who they claim. Trust your pattern recognition.

Requests for Money or Personal Information

Anyone who asks for money from an online relationship is likely running a scam. This includes emergency requests, investment opportunities, and requests to cash checks or transfer funds.

Similarly, requests for sensitive information like your address, financial details, or compromising photos should be refused. A legitimate romantic interest will not pressure you for these things.

Isolation Attempts

Predators try to separate victims from support systems. Online, this manifests as discouraging you from discussing the relationship with friends, criticizing people in your life, or encouraging you to keep the relationship secret.

Healthy relationships withstand outside scrutiny. Someone who wants to hide your connection may have reasons that do not serve your interests.

If You Become a Target

Discovering that someone has been deceiving or stalking you online is frightening. Here is what to do.

Document Everything

Take screenshots of all concerning communications, profiles, and interactions before blocking the person. Save these files in a secure location. This documentation may be necessary if you need to involve law enforcement.

Cut Contact

Block the person on all platforms. Do not engage in final conversations or explanations. Predators often use these interactions to manipulate victims into continued contact. A clean break is safest.

Adjust Your Privacy Settings

Review and tighten privacy settings across all platforms. Change passwords if there is any chance they have been compromised. Enable two-factor authentication wherever possible.

Report the Behavior

Report the person to the platform where you encountered them. If the behavior rises to the level of harassment, stalking, or threats, report it to law enforcement. Many jurisdictions have laws specifically addressing cyberstalking.

Seek Support

Being targeted online can be traumatic even if no physical contact occurred. Talk to trusted friends or family about what happened. Consider speaking with a counselor who understands technology-facilitated abuse.

Protecting Children Online

Children face particular vulnerabilities online. They may lack the experience to recognize manipulation and the judgment to protect their information.

Monitor your children’s online activities without creating an atmosphere of surveillance. Know which platforms they use and who they communicate with. Have ongoing conversations about online safety rather than one-time warnings.

Teach children that people online may not be who they claim. Someone who says they are a fellow teenager may be an adult. Someone who seems friendly may have harmful intentions. Encourage them to tell you if anyone online makes them uncomfortable.

Set clear rules about what information children can share and who they can communicate with. Review privacy settings together. Make it clear that they will not be in trouble for reporting concerning interactions.

Digital Safety as a Practice

Online safety is not a one-time task but an ongoing practice. Platforms change, threats evolve, and our own digital habits shift over time.

Periodically audit your online presence. Search your own name to see what information is publicly available. Review privacy settings on platforms you use. Delete accounts you no longer need. Stay informed about new threats and protective measures.

The internet offers enormous benefits, but those benefits come with risks. By being intentional about what we share and who we trust, we can enjoy online connections while protecting ourselves from those who would exploit them.

Written by Jenny Montoya M.A. Forensic Psychology

If you are experiencing online harassment or stalking, the Cyber Civil Rights Initiative offers resources at cybercivilrights.org or call 1-844-878-2274.