Do you ever wonder why the large Internet service providers, social networking sites and message board forums don't do anything to stop cyber harassment and online stalking? It's because the Communications Decency Act of 1996 ("CDA") Section 230(c)(1) shields providers of interactive computer services from liability for the actions of the individuals using those services.

Since they have no liability for the actions of their members they make very little effort to identify them or even discourage the cyber harassment of other members.

Some Cyber Harassment Statistics (2002):

- 62% of Cyber Harassment Victims are Female, primarily ages 18-24.

- Groups most at risk for Cyber Harassment include:

- Women, particularly abused women

- Special Ability Groups

- Minors

- Members of Minority Groups

- New Internet Users

- 62% of all Cyber Stalking Victims are located in the United States

- Cyber Harassers are primarily male, but the number of female cyber harassment offenders is growing steadily.

- 25% of Offenders are personally known by their victims.

"The most surprising thing we've seen is the rise in female cyberstalkers - this increased from 27% in 2000 to 32.5% in 2001 to 35% in 2002," says Jayne A. Hitchcock, president of WHOA. "We've also had more men come to us for help, jumping from 17% in both 2000 and 2001 to 35% in 2002." http://WHOA.org

The reason so many people will use the Internet to stalk or harass people is because they think they can remain anonymous and their victim will not be able to identify them. Obviously most people would not behave that way if they knew they could be caught. One they are identified most return back under the rock they crawled out from under.

If you or someone you know are the target of a cyber stalker or online harassment you don't need to take it lying down. Even though you will get little help from the ISP or social network you can hire a private investigator to perform a reverse email search to locate and identify the stalker. Document their investigation into a report and use that report in court to get justice against your stalker.

If you are ready to fight back and stop being a victim you can begin by searching online for a PI that specialized in Internet investigations and cyber stalking intervention. Be sure the one you choose is considered an expert in email tracing and locating and identifying people online.

They should also offer other types of services like skip tracing and background reports. That way if the investigation expands into other areas you can save time and money by staying with one group of professional investigators until the end of the case . If you decide to take this route you want to be sure it's done right the first time.

Also check out pricing and estimated length of time for the results of the investigation. Too cheap or too quick is a good sign of a possible scam to take your money and run .