Content Comparison

If you identify that you or someone you know is a victim of technology-enabled abuse, there are many options to consider. The WVU Office of Equity Assurance and the legal system work independently, but in coordination. You may file a report with the University, law enforcement, with both, or with neither. The standards for determining a violation of criminal law are different than the standard in WVU’s grievance procedures. Neither the results of a criminal investigation nor the decision of law enforcement on whether to investigate determines whether a violation of the University’s policy has occurred.

Report the abuse to the appropriate company

Most online social media services and dating apps have a way to report online harassment and abuse through their online help centers. Here are direct links to some popular services:

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TikTok

TikTok’s Community Guidelines prohibits hateful and abusive behavior, hateful ideology, sexual harassment, doxing, hacking, and blackmail.

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Twitter offers several options to address unwanted contact. You can report an account, a tweet, a DM, a list, or a conversation. Twitter offers a range of enforcement options. Users can:

• Unfollow anyone who sends you a tweet or replies to a tweet with a comment you don’t like.

• Block the user to stop them from further contacting you. To remove or block someone, click on the button with a head icon next to the Follow button on a user’s profile. After clicking it you will see a menu with option to block them. You can also report the user for spam which will alert Twitter to users abusing the service.

• Report someone who continues to send you unwanted replies or threats. There are also Twitter provides separate reporting mechanisms for harassing or abusive behavior, impersonation, and doxing/exposing private info.

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If someone is taking screenshots of your images without permission, sending pictures without permission, or sending negative comments, doing the following actions will prevent them from sending you snaps or chat or from viewing your content:

• Block a friend to ensure they won’t be able to view your Story or Charms or send you Snaps or Chats.

• Removing a friend by tapping on the Menu icon, locating their name in the My Friends list, swipe right across their name and press Delete on Snapchat removes them from your friends list so they won’t be able to view your private Stories or Charms but they will be able to view any content you have set to public.

• To block someone who added you on Snapchat, tap the “added me” on the Profile Screen, tap their name and the Wheel Icon next to their name, and press block.

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Facebook insists that they do not tolerate bullying or abuse and once aware, will remove content and may disable the account. Facebook will not tolerate pages that identify and shame private individuals, images that have been altered to degrade private individuals, photos or videos of physical bullying posted to shame a victim, sharing personal information to blackmail or harass people, or repeatedly targeting other people with unwanted friend requests or messages.

• When you Unfriend or block a person by clicking on their profile and on the message dropdown you will see the option to unfriend and/or blocka person they will not be notified. Unfriending will still allow the person to see your profile, add you as a friend, or send you a message.

• Block a person to prevent them from tagging your profile or seeing things you post on your profile.

• Use the Report Links which appears on the page to report profiles, images, posts, videos, DMs, pages, groups, ads, event, or comments or Report Abuse through Facebook’s Help Center.

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If someone on Instagram is sending you negative comments, has created a fake profile, or has hacked into your account, Instagram’s advice is to block and unfollow the person.

• To After you block someone on Instagram, tap their username to open their profile, tap the three dots, and press the option to block user their likes and comments will be removed from your photos and videos; however, people that you block can still see your likes and comments on posts that were shared by public accounts or accounts you mutually follow. A blocked person will not be able to mention your username or tag you.

• If the abuse continues, report the user to Instagram through their help center. You can report abusive messages, posts, comments, and accounts. There are also separate reporting mechanisms for abuse/spam content, bullying or harassment, impersonation, and exposed private information (doxing).

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WhatsApp prohibits submitting content that’s illegal, obscene, defamatory, threatening, intimidating, harassing, hateful, racially or ethnically offensive, or instigates or encourages conduct that would be illegal or otherwise inappropriate.

• Block Blocking and delete a contact who may be abusing you through WhatsApp by clicking on their name, using the drop down menu, and choosing to ‘block’ the person. Report the person; however, if you Report an abuser, reporting a contact will prevent messages, calls, and status updates from showing up on your phone and prevent your last seen, online status updates, and changes made to your profile will no longer be visible to the contact. However, blocking the user won’t remove them from your contact list or vice versa. Blocked contacts will also be able to see your comments in any groups you are both in so do not participate in any groups with people you do not wish to communicate with.

• If you report the person but do not block them, they can still send you texts, messages, or voice notes. Reporting a user will automatically send the last five messages sent to you by the reported user or group.

• You can also Report and Block an individual account. This option will delete your chats with the abuser. You may want to take screenshots before reporting and blocking to document the harassment.Report and Exit a groupand Exit a group or community.

YouTube

YouTube’s Community Guidelines warn against posting videos containing content that is hateful, sexual, violent, graphic, dangerous, or threatening. You can report a video, playlist, thumbnail, comment, live chat message, or channel.

• Flag content that violates community standards and report abusive users via YouTube’s reporting tool.

Bumble

Bumble encourages users to report anything that makes you feel uncomfortable or unsafe such as threats to your safety, health, or wellbeing; derogatory language or hate speech; excessive or harassing messages; unsolicited or nonconsensual sexual images or content; or spam or external links.

• Report someone directly in the Bumble app via the person’s profile or within your conversation with them.

Hinge

Hinge encourages you to report anyone who isn’t meeting their three requirements for membership: someone looking for a relationship that is kind to others and is authentic. They have a zero-tolerance policy for behavior that is lewd, disrespectful, discriminatory, threatening or harassing.

• Report someone by selecting the three dots at the top right and tap Report.

Tinder

Tinder has a zero-tolerance policy on harassment and encourages users to report misconduct and will remove content, ban users, or notify appropriate law enforcement resources.

• Report instances of abuse and/or assault via the self-reporting tool features on all Tinder profiles or by contacting their team online.

Document the abuse

Save all communications with the stalker for evidence—do NOT edit the communications in any way. If the harasser posts comments online, keep copies and considering unpublishing the content rather than deleting it. Save texts, phone calls, and voicemails, take screenshots, or create a log with details. Make sure to include the date, time, location, suspected technology involved, a brief description, and note any witnesses. Save your evidence in multiple places, even physical locations. Consider using this incident and behavior log form from the Stalking Prevention, Awareness, & Resource Center (SPARC).

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Throwing away devices, closing accounts, and otherwise ending an abuser’s access could escalate their behavior. Before you throw away a camera or GPS tracker, think about how the abuser might respond and be sure you have a plan for your physical well-being, including an ally and a safe place to go.

If the person is publishing harmful information about you in other online spaces, complain to the moderator or online system administrators. Keep a record of all your communications with that person.

• Block or filter communications from the harasser, including calls, texts, and online messages. Social media platforms all offer advice on how to block communications. You can also block senders from your MIX Gmail account.

• Tell your family, friends, and employer that someone is stalking you online.

• Keep a record of all communications with law enforcement.

Always trust your instincts. If you suspect that someone knows too much about you or your activities, it is possible that you are being monitored.

Get assistance

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