Is it right for a doctor to look you up on social media? Where is the line for social media, blogs, tumblr comments? At what point should you be able to expect some sort of privacy or not?
If you put it out there it’s public but… is it RIGHT?
I used to be in the camp that if you made it public then you knew anyone could view it so don’t be upset when they do. Then my doctor looked me up online with the sole purpose of hurting me and my family. To get back at me and my husband for asking for an investigation of the poor healthcare I was given.
Friends told me that if I wasn’t doing something wrong then I had nothing to fear. If the world were a utopia they would be right and that would have been the end of it. BUT let me introduce you to a term I have new very up close and personal knowledge of now, Cyberstalking.
Norton defines Cyberstalking as: Cyberstalking, simply put, is online stalking. It has been defined as the use of technology, particularly the Internet, to harass someone. Common characteristics include false accusations, monitoring, threats, identity theft, and data destruction or manipulation. Cyberstalking also includes exploitation of minors, be it sexual or otherwise.
The harassment can take on many forms, but the common denominator is that it’s unwanted, often obsessive, and usually illegal. Cyberstalkers use email, instant messages, phone calls, and other communication devices to stalk, whether it takes the form of sexual harassment, inappropriate contact, or just plain annoying attention to your life and your family’s activities.
Would you tell a teen, being stalked by her former boyfriend or creepy adult, “You told everyone you would be at the football game Friday night so any stalking going on that day is your fault get over it.”
An actor that is in his home and a person is staring in the back window. Sorry that’s not a real threat or stalker because you are famous. You put yourself out there so suck it up buttercup.
No, that’s stalking and there are laws against it.
Why is cyberstalking not given serious consideration and support online? It’s illegal in many states (not all as I learned).
Last year I had a doctor deliberately seek me out online. A doctor that I was having serious life threatening issues with looked me up. The doctor attempted to use that to get me in false legal trouble. Tried to then use that false accusation to then scare me so badly that I would not sue the doctor or the hospital.
Threats, Monitoring, False accusations
We are not talking this person glanced at my wall and profile pic and went gee there is a problem. This person invested a large amount of time to crawl through my online life. Took time and energy to then call others and try to make false claims about me. And used their title as doctor to make the information have more weight because we are hard wired as a culture to believe doctors. They are trustworthy right? Not this one…
All claims were found to be false and a form of retaliation by the doctor.
Cyberstalking is horrible. Stressful and time consuming because you have to refute the accusations. You have to deal with the person. You now feel like you are being watched 24/7 and I was. You can block a person but cyberstalkers are determined. They will find a way around blocks, into groups you are part of with a new name. On public pages that they know you read. Again and again a cyberstalker will seek you out and make your life a jittery mess as if the doctor were peeking in the window of my front door.
That is what a cyberstalker does to your life.
From Thoughtco.com Cyberstalking can take many forms, including:
- harassment, embarrassment and humiliation of the victim
- emptying bank accounts or other economic control such as ruining the victim’s credit score
- harassing family, friends and employers to isolate the victim
- scare tactics to instill fear and more.
My life had to come to a halt. Sick and recovering from sepsis I had to deal with this disaster. The worse part of the problem was it didn’t stop there I was monitored and could still be… if you are reading doctor. SHAME ON YOU!
The doctor in some ways won. I didn’t complete the state report. Or sue the doctor for what happened to me in and out of the hospital. Also as part of the government you can’t go through normal channels to complain or seek proper education/discipline of a doctor.
The doctor destroyed my feeling of safety not just online but in a hospital. In a setting where I need to walk in and trust the professional sometimes sight unseen like in an ER. I do not trust a single doctor that I meet now.
Yes, I have a social media presence that is very open and active. I have it that way so we can have a thriving community of special needs homeschoolers and special needs families. In many ways I choose to fight back against this doctor online.
I will not back down from the work the Lord has set me. To create and tend our large wonderful community of special needs families.
The worst part about this is my young adult and teens saw all this happen. They are now concerned about going to the doctors themselves. One doctor had that much power and impact on our whole family.
One chance meeting and my family’s world was tipped upside down and shaken. One person choosing to do the wrong thing. Cyberstalking is real and it has real effects on the victims involved.
Legal Dictionary cyberstalking–
Cyberstalking involves using electronic means, including the Internet, to stalk or harass a person or group of people. Cyberstalking can include many things including threats, solicitation for sex, false accusations, defamation, slander, libel, identity theft, and vandalism.
What do you think? Is it okay for a doctor to look you up on social media and online? Where is the line to what is okay and what is not?