In everyday life, people often joke about “stalking” someone on social media, or describe someone’s behaviour as a bit “stalky”. But these casual uses of the word can blur the reality of stalking as a serious crime.
According to the Crime Survey for England and Wales, around 1.4 million people aged 16 and over experienced stalking in the year ending March 2025. Yet our recent research suggests young people might not recognise what stalking is, particularly when it comes from someone they know.
Stalking features in many domestic abuse cases, and it is often present in the lead up to domestic homicide. The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has reported record levels of stalking offences being charged. The increase in cases is partly due to better awareness of what stalking is.
The legal landscape around stalking is at a moment of change, with new protections, a review of how police respond to cases, and a stalking action plan underway within the CPS to enhance identification of stalking cases.
Why is stalking often misunderstood?
Stalking is a complex crime. In much of the guidance, the term “stalking” is grouped together with “harassment”, which reflects the current legal framework under the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012.
The primary difference is that stalking involves a fixation on a person, and that the fixated, obsessive behaviour causes fear or distress. But there is evidence of confusion about cases in practice.
The shift from stalking “and” harassment to stalking “or” harassment in the wording of the current College of Policing consultation represents an important evolution towards seeing this behaviour as different and specifying how it is dealt with.
Technology has also transformed what stalking can look like. A person no longer needs to follow someone home or wait outside their workplace. Social media, location sharing, messaging apps and fake online accounts can all be used to monitor someone’s movements, relationships and activities.
Research suggests these forms of cyberstalking are becoming more common, particularly among younger age groups. But young people don’t necessarily recognise them as stalking.
That uncertainty is understandable. Digital technology has blurred boundaries in ways that previous generations did not have to navigate. Constant online connection can make intrusive behaviour seem ordinary, even when it crosses into stalking.
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For our research, we spoke with 84 young people aged 16 to 24 in workshops across Wales. We found that while many could identify individual stalking behaviour, their overall picture of what stalking might look like was often incomplete.
Participants did associate stalking with behaviour such as following someone, creating fake social media accounts, monitoring someone’s online activity, taking photographs without consent, repeatedly contacting someone or refusing to leave them alone.
But when they described the person they imagined as a stalker, many pictured a stranger. It was someone “creepy”, a sex offender, “paedo” or a man lurking in a dark alley. Far fewer recognised that stalking is often carried out by someone the victim already knows. Several young people told us they would be less likely to identify stalking if it came from someone they saw every day, such as a classmate.
That finding stood out to us. Popular culture has long portrayed stalkers as mysterious strangers. In reality, stalking is often committed by current or former partners, acquaintances or people already known to the victim, in addition to strangers. When young people do not recognise that, they may dismiss warning signs, delay seeking help or accept that controlling behaviour is simply part of modern relationships.
Discussions also revealed uncertainty about seeking help. Some young people were not confident that they would talk to someone about concerns, or that the help they would receive would make any difference. There was a general lack of awareness of specialist services that might help with stalking.
Better education
Perhaps the clearest message from the young people we spoke to was what they wanted to see happen next. They wanted more education about stalking, such as what it is, how to recognise it, how it differs from other harmful behaviour and where to get help. They also wanted more clarity on the terminology used to describe stalking.
They wanted education to be in multiple formats, both digital and in-person. In other words, they wanted a diverse approach, which is supported by the findings of other studies about what works.
A number of young people had either received very limited or no education on stalking, despite being in one of the age groups most at risk. Conversations about relationships and safety should include stalking alongside coercive control, consent and being active online, rather than treating it as an issue that only affects adults. Teachers, youth workers, university staff, police officers, parents and carers also need the confidence to recognise stalking and respond appropriately when young people raise concerns.
If society wants to prevent stalking, it cannot wait until young people experience it before talking about it. Recognising the early signs, understanding how stalking behaviour is evolving and listening to young people’s experiences are all essential if prevention is to keep pace with the reality they face.
Sophia Kier-Byfield currently receives research funding from Health and Care Research Wales, Safer Merthyr Tydfil and South Wales Police. She has previously received funding from the VISION Consortium/UKPRP Small Projects Fund, Calan DVS and Welsh Government.
Sarah Wallace currently receives research funding from Health and Care Research Wales, Safer Merthyr Tydfil, Cardiff Council. She has previously received research grant and commercial research/evaluation funding from the VISION Consortium/UKPRP Small Projects Fund, Calan DVS, Welsh Government, Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner North Wales, Aneurin Bevan University Health Board, the Higher Education Funding Council for Wales (HEFCW), and the All-Wales Policing Academic Collaboration.