Change your status message to something
thought-provoking in your network of contacts.

In 1999, a 50 year-old former security
guard pleaded
guilty to cyberstalking in Los Angeles. He used the
internet to terrorise a 28 year-old woman who rejected his
advances. Some of the stuff he did included posing as the
woman in several internet chat rooms and online bulletin
boards. There, he posted her actual contact details like
telephone number and home address, and pretended that she
fantasized about being raped. The online harassment spilled
over to her physical safety when at least six men knocked
on her door, sometimes in the middle of the night, saying
that they wanted to rape her. This is the first successful
prosecution under California's new cyberstalking law, and
the former security guard faces upto six years in prison.

In many other parts of the world, legislation
is slower to respond to such emerging threats. There are
many issues at stake that are still not debated at length.

For example, the internet and digital communications
technology have been used by governments extensively as
a tool
of surveillance, to monitor and control the public's
activity. As a result, tools like anonymous
remailers have been developed to make it harder to trace
the identity of the person who is sending information over
the internet. At the same time, this has been abused
by cyberstalkers to hide their identity when they post
harassing content in their stalking activity.

One significant problem is the gender
disparity that exists in information and communications
technology. The majority of technology developers and those
in decision-making positions are men, who in turn, are able
to shape and define this field according to their dominant
perspectives. Issues like the right to privacy are constructed
in a gender-blind manner, without much consideration of
how this will affects women in particular. Video games,
which is significant platform to get young people used to
digital technology, are often targeted
for boys.

In short, the digital world of information
and communications technology is one that grrls and women
have to work pretty hard at to become comfortable and empowered
subjects.

It's time to take back the tech! :)

Be smart
on how you use things like IM (internet messenger) and chats.
Don't give out personal information that is not compulsory
for people to know. Never sign in using one of these platforms
because phishing
happens here.

Status messages are all cool and funky,
but 'truth' might not be totally necessary. You don't have
to announce to everyone in your contact list that you're
on a toilet break, preoccupied with life, on the verge of
a nervous breakdown or hanging out with some friends at
this and that address. Play with it instead.

Change your status message today into something
that provokes thought in your network of friends and acquaintances.

Invite them to this site - www.takebackthetech.net;
grrl gamer - www.grrlgamer.com;
stop VAW - www.stopvaw.org;
WHO@ - www.haltabuse.org;
or any of those del.icio.us sites that your tagged on day
7.

Happy playing!