Stalking offences have risen sharply across England and Wales, with police-recorded cases soaring from under 3,000 a decade ago to more than 135,000 last year, according to data from the House of Commons Library. This dramatic surge is reflected in every region, and the criminal justice system is grappling to keep pace, with the Crown Prosecution Service charging a record 6,790 offences in 2024-25, up from 2,305 just a few years earlier.
Experts point to a confluence of factors behind the alarming statistics. A significant driver is greater awareness and recognition of stalking behaviours, including coercive control, among both the public and police, leading to increased reporting. However, a more insidious and evolving factor is also at play: the pervasive role of technology in enabling new forms of harassment and surveillance.
The digital toolkit of the modern stalker
As daily life becomes increasingly connected, perpetrators have gained a powerful arsenal for monitoring victims. Beyond traditional methods, domestic abuse charities report cases involving trackers hidden in vehicles, smartwatches and fitness devices used to monitor movements, and shared cloud accounts exploited to pinpoint a victim’s location. Smart home technology is also being weaponised, with perpetrators remotely controlling lights and heating to intimidate and unsettle.
Campaigners warn the problem is accelerating, with artificial intelligence presenting new frontiers for abuse. AI tools can be used to impersonate victims through spoofed audio or video, or to generate fake documents designed to manipulate. This technological shift means stalking is increasingly “hybrid,” blending digital and physical behaviours, though systems often still treat these elements in isolation.
The digital threat extends to particularly vulnerable groups. According to the Internet Watch Foundation, there has been a significant rise in children self-reporting nude or sexual imagery that has spiralled out of control online. The separate Report Remove service noted a 34% increase last year in reports from under-18s facing blackmail after sending such images, with boys aged 14 to 17 accounting for 98% of these sextortion victims.
Profile of a pervasive crime
While anyone can be targeted, the demographic pattern is stark. Women and girls are overwhelmingly the victims, with men the primary perpetrators. Office for National Statistics figures from 2024, based on the Crime Survey for England and Wales, suggest approximately one in five women and one in 11 men aged 16 and over have experienced stalking.
Contrary to the perception of a stranger in the shadows, the perpetrator is most often someone already known to the victim, frequently an ex-partner. This reflects wider patterns of domestic abuse, particularly after relationships end. The impact is profound and all-consuming, forcing victims to live in constant fear, reshaping their routines, work, and homes. Some, like former BBC broadcaster Emily Maitlis, endure campaigns lasting decades, while others are forced to uproot their lives entirely, facing severe financial and emotional fallout.
Research indicates this persistent behaviour can escalate. Stalking is linked to serious violence and, in some cases, homicide, particularly where the stalker is a current or former partner and patterns of coercive control are present.
Systemic challenges and legal reforms
The criminal justice system has taken steps to respond. The Crown Prosecution Service has launched a dedicated Stalking Action Plan to equip prosecutors, and sentencing powers have been strengthened. The maximum prison term for the most serious stalking offences is now 10 years, or 14 if racially or religiously aggravated.
Legislative tools have also been introduced. Stalking Protection Orders (SPOs), created under the 2019 Stalking Protection Act, allow police to impose civil restrictions on suspected perpetrators before conviction, banning contact or requiring them to seek help. The government has announced plans to make these orders more widely available.
Yet significant hurdles remain. A 2024 qualitative study by the Independent Office for Police Conduct found stalking cases are still frequently misidentified by police. Victims report poor communication, a lack of consistent support, and being left to gather evidence themselves while cases progress slowly, allowing behaviour to escalate.
Campaigners, including the National Stalking Consortium and the Suzy Lamplugh Trust—which runs the National Stalking Helpline—argue that technology companies have been too slow to design products with safety in mind. Politically, the Liberal Democrats have proposed an emergency stalking protection notice to enable faster police intervention, mirroring measures used in domestic violence cases. The need for earlier identification of risk remains a key focus, highlighted during the Suzy Lamplugh Trust’s National Stalking Awareness Week.
