For many survivors of domestic abuse, the end of the relationship does not mean the end of the torment. Instead, the abuse can morph into a relentless campaign of stalking and harassment designed to maintain control, create fear, and destroy your sense of safety.

In 2025, this almost always involves a digital component. Post-separation stalking and cyberstalking are serious forms of abuse, and they are against the law. This guide will help you recognize the signs, understand your rights, and take practical steps to get help in Toronto.

Digital stalking is not just a single angry text message. It is a pattern of repeated and unwanted behaviour using technology that makes you fear for your safety. It can be subtle or overt, but its goal is always to intrude on your life and exert power.

Signs of digital stalking include:

• [ ] Constant, Unwanted Communication: An overwhelming number of texts, calls, emails, or direct messages, especially after you have asked the person to stop.

• [ ] Using Fake Profiles: The person creates new social media accounts to contact or monitor you after you have blocked them.

• [ ] Monitoring Your Social Circle: They frequently check, "like," or comment on posts made by your friends and family in an effort to track your activities.

• [ ] Spyware and Stalkerware: Secretly installing software on your phone or computer to read your messages, track your location, or listen to your calls.

• [ ] Unwanted Tracking Devices: Using devices like Apple AirTags or other GPS trackers by planting them in your car, purse, jacket, or your child's belongings.

• [ ] Public Humiliation and Threats: Posting private photos or information about you online (doxing), spreading rumours, or making threats on public forums.

• [ ] Impersonation: Creating a fake email or social media profile in your name to damage your reputation or contact others.

In Canada, stalking is prosecuted under the Criminal Code as Criminal Harassment. It is not just about feeling annoyed; it's about feeling afraid.

For behaviour to be considered criminal harassment, it must meet four criteria:

1. It is Repeated: It’s a pattern, not a one-off incident.
2. It is Unwanted: You have made it clear, directly or indirectly, that the contact is not welcome.
3. It is Harassing: The conduct causes you to feel tormented, troubled, or worried.
4. It Causes Fear: This is the critical element. The pattern of behaviour must cause you to have a reasonable fear for your safety or the safety of someone you know.

A direct physical threat is not required. If an ex-partner repeatedly shows up at your work, bombards you with messages, and monitors your online activity to the point where you fear what they might do next, that can be enough to constitute criminal harassment.

If you are experiencing this, prioritize your safety and start creating a record.

Step 1: Trust Your Gut and Secure Your Tech If you feel like you're being watched, act as if you are. Change all your passwords, enable two-factor authentication on every account, review your phone's location sharing settings, and run a security scan for spyware.

Step 2: Do Not Engage This is one of the hardest but most important steps. Do not respond to the person. Any reply, even an angry one telling them to stop, can be seen as encouragement. Your goal is to make communication a one-way street.

Step 3: Document Everything (Your Most Powerful Tool) Create a detailed evidence log. This will be essential for the police and for court.

• Screenshot everything: Messages, friend requests from fake profiles, comments, call logs.

• Do not delete the originals.

• Keep a written log: For each incident, record the date, time, what happened (e.g., "Received 15 texts," "He posted about my workplace on his Instagram story"), and crucially, how it made you feel (e.g., "I felt scared to go to work," "I was afraid he was watching me").

Step 4: Get Legal and Community Support in Toronto

You do not have to face this alone.

• Call 911 if you are in immediate danger.

• File a Police Report: Go to your local Toronto Police Service division to file a report for criminal harassment. Bring your evidence log and screenshots.

• Seek a Restraining Order or Peace Bond: A lawyer can help you obtain a restraining order in family court that legally prohibits the person from contacting you or coming near you. Breaching this order is a criminal offense. A peace bond is a similar order available through criminal court.

• Contact Support Services:

  • Victim Services Toronto: Provides 24/7 crisis response and can help you with safety planning and navigating the justice system.

  • Barbra Schlifer Commemorative Clinic: Offers expert legal representation, counselling, and support for women survivors of violence, including help with obtaining restraining orders.

  • Assaulted Women's Helpline (416-863-0511): A 24/7 line for crisis support, emotional support, and referrals to shelters and other services that specialize in safety planning.

Post-separation stalking is a terrifying violation of your right to live in peace. It is not your fault. Trust your instincts, document the abuse, and reach out to the services that are here to help you regain your safety and freedom.

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Under Canada's Criminal Code, stalking is known as "Criminal Harassment." It's not just one action but a pattern of repeated, unwanted behaviour that makes you fear for your safety or the safety of someone you know. This can include repeatedly following you, watching your home or work, and persistently contacting you or your family and friends.

Digital stalking uses technology to harass, monitor, and control you. Common signs in 2025 include:

• Constant, unwanted texts, emails, and direct messages.
• Your ex knowing things about your life that you haven't shared with them (a sign they are monitoring your social media or have access to your accounts).
• Receiving notifications of login attempts on your email or social media.
• Finding tracking apps or spyware on your phone or computer.
• Your ex showing up unexpectedly at places you've only mentioned online.
• Being impersonated or publicly humiliated by them on social media platforms.

The first and most important steps are to secure your technology and cease all engagement.

1. Secure Your Tech: Change all your passwords (email, social media, banking). Enable two-factor authentication (2FA) and review the privacy settings on all your accounts to be as restrictive as possible.
2. Cease Engagement: Do not respond to any attempts at contact. Replying, even to tell them to stop, can be seen as encouragement. Block them on all platforms.

Documentation is key. Keep a detailed log of every incident. For digital harassment, this means:

• Taking screenshots of all unwanted messages, comments, and posts (even from fake profiles).

• Saving all harassing emails and voicemails.

• Noting the date, time, and a description of each incident.

  This evidence is crucial for filing a police report and getting a restraining order.

Toronto has several resources to help you:

• In an emergency: Call 911 immediately.
• To report the crime: Contact the Toronto Police Service's non-emergency line at 416-808-2222 to file a report.
• For safety planning and crisis support: Call Victim Services Toronto (416-808-7066) or the Assaulted Women's Helpline (416-863-0511).
• For legal help: A family lawyer can help you get a restraining order. Organizations like the Barbra Schlifer Commemorative Clinic offer free legal support to women survivors of violence.

Both are court orders designed to protect you. A restraining order is obtained through family court and sets conditions on your ex's contact with you and your children. A peace bond is obtained through criminal court. To get a peace bond, you must show that you have a reasonable fear that your ex will harm you, your family, or your property. Breaching either of these orders is a criminal offence.