Workplace Stalking and Harassment: Security Measures for Targeted Individuals

Stalking affects an estimated 1.5 million people in England and Wales each year (Office for National Statistics, Crime Survey for England and Wales 2024). It is not a minor nuisance or a private matter. Research conducted by the US Secret Service’s National Threat Assessment Center (NTAC) has documented consistently that a significant proportion of perpetrators of targeted violent attacks – against public figures, workplace targets, and private individuals – engaged in stalking or harassment behaviours in the period preceding the attack.

For security professionals and employers, stalking is a threat indicator that demands a structured response. This article examines how stalking cases arise in workplace and professional contexts, what legal tools are available, and what security measures work.

How Stalking Manifests in Professional and Workplace Contexts

Stalking in professional contexts typically arises from one of several relationship categories:

Former intimate partners. The most common stalking scenario. A former partner, often following a relationship ending against their will, engages in a course of monitoring, contact, and approach that continues despite requests to stop. Where the target is employed, the workplace becomes a focal point – a known location the stalker can access. The employer’s premises, commute routes, and the target’s professional schedule become part of the stalker’s pattern.

Former colleagues or employees. Dismissal, disciplinary action, or a perceived professional grievance can generate a stalking response. The stalker in this scenario is familiar with the target’s working environment, may have existing access credentials or knowledge of building layouts, and is likely to be identified to colleagues as a familiar face. ASIS International’s 2021 Workplace Violence and Active Assailant study noted that a significant proportion of serious workplace violence incidents involved former employees.

Clients or customers with grievances. Healthcare workers, social workers, legal professionals, financial advisers, and others who make decisions affecting clients can face stalking by individuals who attribute negative outcomes to them personally. This category of stalker often has no prior personal relationship with the target and may escalate more unpredictably than stalkers motivated by intimacy.

Obsessive attachments. Public-facing executives, media personalities, academics, or individuals who have received media coverage can attract fixated individuals who develop an attachment without any prior relationship. The Fixated Research Group – established by the Metropolitan Police and NHS – has documented the clinical profile of fixated individuals who pose risks to public figures. Their research shows this category of stalker is often mentally unwell but not always less dangerous for that reason.

The Legal Framework (UK)

Protection from Harassment Act 1997 (as amended). The primary piece of legislation. Harassment involves a course of conduct (two or more occasions) that a reasonable person would consider harassment. Stalking specifically involves acts associated with monitoring, following, spying, or interfering. Civil and criminal remedies are available.

Stalking Protection Orders (SPOs). Available since 2020 under the Stalking Protection Act 2019. Applied for by police, effective without a conviction, enforceable with criminal sanction for breach. Interim SPOs can be obtained urgently. These are the fastest legal protection available in serious cases.

Non-Molestation Orders. Available in family court for cases involving partners or family members. Can prohibit contact and approach. Breach is a criminal offence.

Injunctions. Civil injunctions can be sought by employers or individuals in cases not covered by the above. These require court proceedings and are slower but may be appropriate where the perpetrator is not known to police.

Employer obligations. Under the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 and Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999, employers have a duty to conduct risk assessments and manage risks to employee safety – including third-party violence. Where an employer is made aware that an employee faces a credible threat, failing to act constitutes a breach of this duty. The Equality Act 2010 is also relevant where stalking or harassment is connected to a protected characteristic.

Threat Assessment: Is This Person Dangerous?

Not every stalking case involves the same level of physical risk. Structured professional threat assessment is the appropriate tool for evaluating risk level and informing the security response.

The ATAP (Association of Threat Assessment Professionals) Workplace Threat Assessment methodology evaluates:

Pathway to violence. Has the individual moved along the pathway from grievance to ideation to research to planning to preparation? Most dangerous individuals show progress along this pathway; most harassing individuals do not.

Escalation pattern. Is the frequency, intensity, or nature of contact increasing over time? Escalation is a significant risk indicator.

Explicit and implicit threats. Have specific threats been made? Have statements implied intent to harm? Documentation of all communications from the stalker is essential for this analysis.

Access to weapons. Does the individual have known access to weapons? In the UK context, this includes bladed articles, not just firearms. Previous arrests or incidents involving weapons are relevant.

History of violence. Prior incidents of violence against the current target or others are among the strongest predictors of future violence.

Proximity seeking. Is the individual attempting to reduce distance to the target – attending the workplace, conducting surveillance near the target’s home, or attempting to establish contact through intermediaries?

For serious or escalating cases, commissioning a specialist threat assessment from a qualified professional (psychologist or behavioural analyst with threat assessment training, or a threat assessment specialist from a firm such as Ontic, Kroll, or Gavin de Becker and Associates) is appropriate. This is not a task for a general corporate security team without specific training.

Security Measures for Stalking Cases

Workplace physical security. Review and tighten access control immediately upon identifying a credible threat:

• Ensure the stalker’s any existing building passes or credentials are revoked immediately
• Brief reception and security staff with the individual’s description and a clear protocol for turning them away and notifying the security team if they approach
• Do not post the target’s movements, schedule, or location on shared calendars accessible to former employees or external parties
• Review CCTV coverage of access points and the target’s primary work areas

Personal security briefing. The target should be briefed on personal security protocols immediately:

• Vary commute routes and times where possible
• Avoid predictable locations at predictable times
• Do not confront the stalker directly – this is the single most common mistake and frequently escalates
• Report all contact and appearances by the stalker to the designated security contact and document everything
• Be aware of digital surveillance and conduct a device audit (see below)

Digital security. A significant proportion of modern stalking involves covert digital monitoring:

• Location sharing on devices should be disabled or restricted to trusted contacts
• Social media should be audited for geolocation data in posts
• Former partners or colleagues may have knowledge of account passwords, Apple ID credentials, or access to location-sharing apps set up during the relationship – these should be reviewed and changed
• Device audit for spyware (commercial stalkerware such as mSpy, FlexiSpy, or Hoverwatch is available and frequently used in intimate partner stalking contexts) – this requires specialist tools, not just a manual review
• Email filtering and blocking for unwanted communications

Close protection. Where the risk assessment indicates a credible physical threat, close protection provides direct protection capability for the transition periods most at risk. In stalking cases, this typically means:

• Commute protection (the highest-risk period)
• Coverage for any public or external engagements
• Support during court appearances related to the case
• Residential assessments and, where appropriate, residential security measures

Support for the target. Stalking victims frequently experience significant psychological impact. Support should be explicitly offered and made available through the employer’s EAP (Employee Assistance Programme) or direct referral to specialist services. The National Stalking Helpline (UK: 0808 802 0300) provides specialist support and practical guidance.

Documentation and Evidence

One of the most practically important things any stalking victim can do is maintain meticulous documentation. Every incident should be recorded with: date, time, location, what happened, any witnesses, and any communications received. Photographs of the stalker at locations, screenshots of digital communications, and security footage should be preserved.

This documentation serves two purposes: it provides the evidential foundation for any legal action (police report, court application, SPO application), and it allows the threat assessment team to track escalation patterns over time.

The importance of early reporting to police cannot be overstated. Many stalking cases persist because early incidents are not reported on the grounds of not wanting to overreact. Early reporting establishes a documented pattern that is essential if the case later escalates to a criminal level. The UK’s Operation Encompass and local police MARAC (Multi-Agency Risk Assessment Conference) processes are most effective when a case history exists.

Multi-Agency Coordination

Serious stalking cases require coordination between multiple parties: the employer’s security team, police, legal advisers, specialist stalking support organisations, and – where applicable – the close protection team. This coordination needs a named coordinator and a clear communication protocol.

Information sharing must be managed carefully. The target’s home address, routine, and security arrangements should be known only to those who need it for their protective role. Over-sharing of this information with HR teams, management, or colleagues who do not need it creates additional exposure.

Summary

Stalking in professional and workplace contexts is a documented pathway to serious violence. The appropriate response is structured: threat assessment by a qualified professional, legal action using available instruments (SPO, restraining order, injunction), workplace security measures, personal security briefing, and close protection where the risk level warrants it.

Employers who receive a stalking report and treat it as a personal matter for the employee to manage are failing their legal duty of care and exposing themselves to significant liability in the event of an incident.

For related guidance, see our articles on protective intelligence and threat assessment and residential security for executives. For the specific fixated person and activist threat environment in the healthcare and pharmaceutical sector – where patient grievances and campaign targeting create a distinct stalking and harassment risk profile – see our security for healthcare executives guide. For organisations with staff who work alone in client premises, off-site locations, or high-risk field environments – covering BS 8484, man-down detection, Police URN access, and sector-specific lone worker risk in social care, construction, and P1 city expatriate roles – see our lone worker protection guide.

James Whitfield is a Senior Security Consultant with 20 years of experience in executive protection, threat assessment, and corporate security across the UK and internationally.