Protecting Yourself and Others From Harassment Online
This talk includes discussion of organized campaigns of stalking, harassment, and abuse, as well as discussions of violence against women and threats of violence against women.
If at any time during this talk you’re feeling uncomfortable, please don’t hesitate to leave.
Self-care is important.
Contact:
Threats, harassment, or abuse so severe or pervasive that it affects your ability or willingness to interact online.
We'll be talking about:
We're focusing on individual actors, rather than community leaders.
Marginalized people should not have to be civil, quiet, or compliant just to stay safe online. More importantly, it doesn't help. Trolls will attack us no matter how we behave. They'll even attack bots with names that read as feminine and/or non-white.
The mosquitoes of the troll world, they attempt to silence marginalized people with a tiring series of "small" annoyances.
Prof. McGonagall has no time for nonsense
Helping Friends:
DO NOT:
DO:
Prof. McGonagall has no time for nonsense
Unlike fly-by trolls or attacks of opportunity, harassment campaigns are sustained attacks against a particular person.
Strong, unique passwords and Two-Factor Authentication are the best way to secure your accounts. These will stop most attacks.
Call your phone company and attach a verbal PIN or passphrase to your account. Do not use your SSN or other ID numbers.
Attackers have learned to call phone companies, impersonate their victims, and get their victims' phone numbers redirected to their phones--thus gaining access to two-factor authentication text messages they can use to take over your accounts.
Apply security updates for all your electronic devices in a timely fashion.
If possible, select a phone that gets security updates directly from Apple or Google, rather than buying a phone whose OS your mobile carrier has modified. Mobile carriers often fail to patch their phones, leaving them open to known security vulnerabilities.
Security questions are bad security, because they're often easy to guess or cross-reference.
When security questions are mandatory, generate passwords for them and store them in your password vault.
Alternately, come up with false answers that attackers won't be able to google the answer to, but which you will still be able to remember.
Threats, harassment, and abuse cause a stress reaction. A sustained campaign of harassment can:
Ask trusted friends to monitor the harassment for you and inform you if there's any escalation you need to be aware of.
"Eat, Drink, and Be Merry:" get enough food, stay hydrated, and do things that make you happy.
Be aware of your stress levels and treat yourself gently.
Do nice things for yourself and let others do nice things for you.