Common tactics used by cyberstalkers are to vandalize a search engine or encyclopedia, to threaten a victim's earnings, employment, reputation, or safety. A repeated pattern of such actions against a target by an adult constitutes cyberstalking.
Cyber-bullying - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
And what the law says about this:
1.1.10Although bullying is not a specific criminal offence in UK law, there are criminal laws that can apply in terms of harassment or threatening behaviour. For example – and particularly pertinent for cyberbullying – threatening and menacing communications.
1.1.11In fact, some cyberbullying activities could be criminal offences under a range of different laws, including the Protection from Harassment Act 1997 which has both criminal and civil provision, the Malicious Communications Act 1988, section 127 of the Communications Act 2003 and the Public Order Act 1986. The age of criminal responsibility in the UK starts at 10.
* Protection from Harassment Act 1997: This Act is relevant for incidents that have happened repeatedly (i.e. on more that two occasions). Section 1 prohibits behaviour amounting to harassment of another. Section 2 provides a criminal offence and section 3 provides a civil remedy for breach of the prohibition on harassment in section 1. Section 4 provides a more serious offence of someone causing another person to fear, on at least two occasions, that violence will be used against them5. A civil court may grant an injunction to restrain a person from conduct which amounts to harassment and, following conviction of an offence under section 2 or 4, restraining orders are available to protect the victim of the offence.
* Communications Act 2003: Section 127 covers all forms of public communications, and subsection (1) defines an offence of sending a ‘grossly offensive…obscene, indecent or menacing’ communication6. Subsection (2) defines a separate offence where for the purposes of causing annoyance, inconvenience or needless anxiety, a person sends a message which that person knows to be false (or causes it to be sent) or persistently makes use of a public communications system7.
* Malicious Communications Act 1988: Section 1 makes it an offence to send an indecent, grossly offensive or threatening letter, electronic communication or other article to another person with the intention that it should cause them distress or anxiety8.
* An anti-social behaviour order (ASBO) under the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 12could be used for cyberbullying. An ASBO is a civil order which prohibits an individual from engaging in specific anti-social acts. An ASBO can be made against any person, aged 10 years or over, where there is evidence that their behaviour caused, or is likely to cause, harassment, alarm or distress to others and where an order is needed to protect person(s) from further anti-social acts. Whether a course of conduct is anti-social in nature is primarily measured by the consequences and the effect it has, or is likely to have, on a member or members of the community within which it is taking place. An ASBO can be used in conjunction with other measures as part of a tiered approach to tackling anti-social behaviour. Prohibitions should be precise, targeted at the specific behaviour complained of, and proportionate to the legitimate aim of protecting the community from further abuse. ASBOs can be extremely effective in preventing further escalation into criminal behaviour. Breach of an Anti-Social Behaviour Order is a criminal offence and criminal penalties apply.
Cyberbullying - digizen.org