Penn seeks to foster an environment where all students, faculty, and staff can fully engage in the academic and social experience, free from harassment, intimidation, and threat of harm. We strongly condemn doxing and other forms of online harassment. Such behavior is counter to Penn’s commitment to creating an inclusive community that upholds our fundamental values of academic freedom, open expression, and productive exchange of perspectives and ideas.
Public Safety, University Life, the Office of Audit, Compliance, & Privacy, Community Standards & Accountability, the Office of the General Counsel, and Wellness at Penn are working together to address the issue of online harassment.
Online harassment can take on different forms, such as:
- Doxing is when private identifying information that is not otherwise publicly available is published online. This information can include sharing an individual’s private email, personal phone number, home address, etc. on various platforms in an attempt to frighten the individual and encourage additional harassment.
- Cyberbullying is the willful and repeated harm inflicted through the use of computers, cell phones, and other electronic devices.
- Trolling occurs when individuals deliberately follow and provoke others online, often with offensive content. While most trolling is merely a nuisance, occasionally trolling attacks can escalate to threats or to the point where numerous individuals are engaged in harassing the target and/or target’s organization.
If you feel unsafe for any reason, call Public Safety at 215-573-3333. We are here for you 24-hours a day, 7 days a week, call anytime.
Below is a list of resources and ways of seeking assistance if you experience online harassment.
Report Online Harassment
You may report any online harassment or threatening behavior to the Division of Public Safety by calling 215-573-3333 for immediate response or filling out our Report Online Harassment Form for response within 48 hours. You may also choose to report to Special Services at 215-898-4481 or specialservices@publicsafety.upenn.edu.
Seeking Guidance and Support
If you do not want to make a report but are seeking guidance, support, and more information, we have made these resources available to you. Students can reach out to Student Intervention Services or University Life; faculty and staff can reach out to their department or Special Services.
Steps to Consider in the Event of Online Harassment
Online harassment can be alarming and stressful. In addition to the support resources discussed above, you may also want to consider taking any of the following actions here to respond to an incident of online harassment. While this is not an exhaustive list of actions that can be taken, this guidance is meant to help you navigate situations of online harassment.