Invisible Harassment: How Technology is Fueling New Forms of Abuse Against Women

What do you do when harassment becomes invisible, following you from one screen to

the next?

In the digital age, harassment has taken on a new, dark form that is increasingly impossible to

avoid. Where the old-fashioned sort of harassment almost inevitably requires the presence of

the tormentor, digital harassment provides torturers with the opportunity to invade personal

space without ever having seen. And uncomfortably enough, women are disproportionately the

victim of the incessant messages, cyberstalking, and threats-with much little recourse or

accountability for the perpetrators.

Digital harassment isn't just the occasional offended comment:. This can range from the subtle

art of tracking your online presence to overt forms of revenge porn or doxxing. For many young

women, the safety line and exposure line is razor-thin as they navigate platforms where every

move may have the potential to be monitored, recorded, and even manipulated by others. In

recent studies, nearly half of young women reported some form of online harassment, and the

emotional toll is deep-seated. Digital harassment frequently impinges on self-esteem, mental

health, and even the physiological safety of women, forcing them to reconsider how much

personal information they should share online.

What is the reason for such a significant presence of digital harassment? This phenomenon

ultimately roots back in anonymity. Digital media let trolls disguise themselves under

pseudonyms, throwaway accounts or fake profiles. Invisibility masks those who would otherwise

suffer direct social repercussions within the real world. This lack of strict laws or oversight also

gives these abuses latitude to continue; despite the widespread occurrences, the online world

still remains in a legal gray area where what is punishable in person can often go unaddressed

digitally.

And, whereas face-to-face harassment is based on time and space, digital harassment occurs

in any time and any space. The threats will not leave your space once you leave a building or a

particular area-they trail along into the places on your devices, becoming an unwelcome

companion in daily life. For instance, the case of cyberstalking, wherein every online activity,

likes, comments, and even actual locations are tracked by an individual in real time. One is the

hurtful and invasive form of stalking, leaving unchecked, with which it can quickly scale if

unchecked; this is one of the disturbing aspects of digital harassment.

What can women do to regain their digital autonomy and protect themselves? Most of all,

privacy is power. Small changes such as setting social profiles to private, avoiding geotagging, and doing as little as possible with your personal information online make a difference. Consider

putting into practice privacy tools such as two-factor authentication, good passwords, and apps

that track permissions and monitor the location of their application. But individual action alone

isn't enough; collective awareness and education are essential, and most important, we need

policy change.

To fight this, we need stricter laws specifically dealing with issues of digital harassment and

requiring technology companies to take responsibility through making it easier to report abuse

and increasing security features. Women's rights organizations like Pink Legal are vying in the

sense to spread awareness and voice outwards to work towards policy reforms which give

actual protection to women in such digital spaces. It is by demanding policy changes and

education of the general public on the safety of cyberspace that we can ensure that women are

liberated from harassment within a much safer online environment.

It's time to acknowledge digital harassment as seriously injurious as it is. Together, we can stop

it—without quiet resilience and acceptance of the 'new normal,' but with boundaries, awareness,

and calls to create a digital space where women are safe, powerful, and heard. The world of the

Internet should be a place for connection and growth, not fear.

- Richa Kumari

Content Associate