Your chances of being stalked are close to 1 in 10. One in 12 women are stalked at some point in their life. A woman is 3 times more likely to be stalked than raped. Each year an estimated 1,006,970 women and 370,992 men are stalked in the U.S. The primary targets of stalkers are women (80%). 8% of all women and 2% of all men are stalked at some time in their life. 10% of female victims and 12% of male victims are less than 18 years old. Approximately 50% of all stalking victims never report their victimization to law enforcement. Only 25% attain restraining orders against their assailant. 80% of all restraining orders attained against stalkers are violated.
As of January 1, 1994, all fifty states in the U.S. have an anti-stalking law. On September 23, 1996 President Bill Clinton signed into law the Interstate Stalking Punishment and Prevention Act of 1996 making it a federal offense to stalk across state lines. Most violent crimes begin with stalking. People, including children, are typically stalked prior to being abducted. Stalking is prolonged criminal behavior that endangers the victim, their family, the community, and also poses a very real threat for workplace violence. Millions of innocent citizens are secondary targets to stalking. They suffer the repercussions of the criminal acts - either directly or indirectly. More than 45% of all stalking cases involve disruption within the workplace and have devastating effects on the productivity of organizations and on the quality of life of employees.