Join us in January, and throughout the year, in efforts to prevent stalking at UC Berkeley.
January is National Stalking Awareness Month
Stalking Awareness Month Campaign
A collaboration between the PATH to Care Center, the Office for the Prevention of Harassment and Discrimination, and the Clery Compliance Office.
Please visit the PATH to Care Center's Instagram (@pathtocareucb) for full posts and more content.
Stalking Bystander Intervention and Social Norms
Disclosures may not always sound direct.
“They’re just really protective”
“They message me constantly”
“They get upset if I don’t respond”
“They keep showing up”
“They constantly track my location”
Instead of listening for “stalking,” listen for patterns.
Stalking includes repeated, unwanted behaviors, such as:
Excessive messaging or monitoring; tracking location or online activity; jealousy that limits autonomy; showing up uninvited; leaving/sending items or gifts.
Stalking is about impact, power, and control — not intent.
If you are concerned about stalking behaviors, you are not alone. According to recent campus surveys:
88% of UC Berkeley students and employees would listen and express support to a friend/colleague when their intimate partner is messaging them excessively to check what they are doing.
Over 2/3 of UC Berkeley students and employees would get help when a friend/colleague is persistently contacting or following another person.
Most UC Berkeley students and employees would confront a friend or colleague who is too jealous or controlling of their partner.
Your role is not to fix the situation, it is to express care and concern for the person who shared with you. This can look like listening without judgment, validating their experience, respecting their autonomy, and offering options, not directives.
If you hear about or witness stalking behaviors, follow the CARE bystander intervention model:
C: Confront the Situation. Name concerning behavior when it feels safe“I’m not comfortable with how controlling that sounds.”“Have they actually asked you to come over?”
A: Alert Others. Get support from friends, colleagues, or campus resources
R: Redirect Attention. Interrupt or shift the interaction“Hey, can I talk to you for a second?”
E: Engage After. Check in privately and offer support“How are you feeling about what happened?”
Hybrid Stalking and Tech Safety
Stalking doesn’t always happen in just one space.
Many people experience both technology-facilitated harm and in-person behaviors at the same time.
Nearly half of stalking cases involve both digital and in-person behaviors, and these patterns can escalate over time.
(Stalking Prevention, Awareness, & Resource Center (SPARC))
Hybrid stalking may include:
Tracking someone’s location through apps or devices and following them in person monitoring social media and showing up at places they frequent, repeated unwanted texts, calls, or DMs, and unwanted in-person contact.
Tech safety is a form of care, supporting autonomy and choice.
There’s no one “right” way to use technology. Everyone can set their own boundaries, and tech safety is one way people can care for themselves and their boundaries.
If tech safety feels relevant, some steps can include:
(UC Berkeley Privacy Office, UC Berkeley Cybersecurity Clinic, SPARC)
If your personal information is shared without consent, or if you think an account has been accessed or compromised, having a personal response plan can help reduce harm.
You don’t need to doeverything at once. Go step bystep, at your pace.
Resources such as PATH to Care can help you navigate your options and create a personal response plan. More resources and information can be found in the Notice of Rights and Options (chancellor.berkeley.edu/clery-noro)
UC Berkeley support options include:
*cybersecurityclinic@ischool.berkeley.edu: help with account security, hacks, and digital safety steps
*The Office for the Prevention of Harassment and Discriminationcan assist with No-Contact Directives and other supportive measures
PATH to Care offers confidential advocacy for students, staff, and faculty experiencing stalking (including technology-facilitated methods)
A PATH to Care Advocate can help you: talk through what's happening, think about digital and in-person safety together, explore your options without pressure.
Office Line: 510-642-1988 (M-F 9AM-4PM) ptcadvocates@berkeley.edu
Stalking: Statistics - Key Facts - Resources
Stalking is a pattern of unwanted, repeated behavior that causes fear, distress, or concern for someone’s safety(Stalking Prevention, Awareness, and Resource Center [SPARC])
Stalking is about power and control, not romance, interest, or persistence (SPARC)
Stalking can be in person, digital (cyberstalking), or a combination of the two.
Even if one behavior seems “small,” repeated actions create a pattern (SPARC)
Repeated unwanted calls, texts, DMs, or emails
Following or showing up uninvited to someone’s home, work, or school
Monitoring someone’s location, social media, or online activity
Sending unwanted gifts or messages after being told to stop
Threats, intimidation, or using others to contact the person
Reports of stalking at UC Berkeley have increased 216% since 2019 (2025 UCB Annual Security and Fire Safety Report).
The majority of stalking reports at UC Berkeley occur on campus, including student housing (91 on campus; 22 in student housing in 2024).
Stalking reports at UC Berkeley have risen each year since 2022, highlighting the ongoing impact of stalking on campus communities.
Cyberstalking
“I’m gonna stalk their Instagram”
Why casual language hides real harm.
Cyberstalking is not a joke or slang.
It is a recognized form of sexual and intimate partner violence that causes fear, trauma, and loss of autonomy. Keep swiping to learn about the unique nature of cyberstalking, prevention methods, and resources.
Using “stalk” casually minimizes survivors’ experiences, normalizes invasive behavior, makes stalking harder to identify and report.
When violence is joked about, harm becomes invisible. (National Sexual Violence Resource Center – NSVRC)
Cyberstalking is repeated, unwanted use of technology (texts, DMs, apps, social media, location tracking, emails, etc.) to cause fear, distress, or safety concerns by monitoring, harassing, threatening, and/or controlling.
This is about power and control, not interest. (National Sexual Violence Resource Center – NSVRC)
Yes, public health and violence prevention frameworks classify stalking — including cyberstalking — as a form of sexual violence.
Why?
It violates consent and bodily autonomy. It is gendered and disproportionately affects women and LGBTQ+ people. It is frequently sexualized, threatening, or coercive.
Sexual violence is not only physical.
(National Sexual Violence Resource Center – NSVRC; CDC)
Cyberstalking most often occurs during or shortly after a breakup; within dating or intimate relationships; and when one partner tries to maintain control after separation.
Former partners may already have passwords or account access, location data, and knowledge of routines and vulnerabilities.
This makes cyberstalking a common tactic of IPV, not an isolated behavior.
(CDC; DOJ OVC)
Research shows stalking is a strong predictor of escalation, including: physical violence, sexual assault, and lethal violence in abusive relationships.
Digital monitoring often intensifies when survivors set boundaries or try to leave.
(National Center for Victims of Crime; DOJ Office on Violence Against Women)
In California, cyberstalking is illegal.
Under Penal Code § 646.9, digital abuse alone (including electronic communication) can meet the legal definition of stalking.
California law recognizes that digital behavior can be dangerous and criminal.
Cyberstalking, both romantic and non-romantic, is a violation of UC Policy.
Under the UC Policy on Sexual Violence and Sexual Harassment, stalking includes behavior that: is repeatedcould include unwanted behaviors like following, monitoring, observing, surveilling, threatening,or communicating,would cause a reasonable person to fear for their safety, or the safety of others.
When cyberstalking is dismissed as “just online”,“being dramatic”, or “something you can block”, survivors are less likely to seek help — and more likely to experience escalation.
Minimization protects perpetrators, not survivors.
Understanding cyberstalking as sexual and intimate partner violence helps: survivors recognize abuse earlier, friends respond more effectively, and institutions intervene before escalation.
Calling it what it is saves lives.
Effective prevention includes: naming cyberstalking accurately; challenging jokes and minimizing language; teaching consent in digital spaces; believing survivors early;and intervening when patterns appear.
(CDC; SPARC)
At the individual & community level:
Say “looking up” or “checking out,” not “stalking”. Respect digital boundaries. Take repeated unwanted contact seriously. Support survivors without questioning or minimizing. Share resources and advocate for institutional accountability.
Prevention is cultural, not just legal.
(NSVRC; CDC)