A survey by the Justice Department has found that stalking is affecting 3.4 million Americans every year with tens of thousands loosing their jobs, fleeing their homes or fearing for their safety.

Over 10% of victims said they have suffered for five or more years and one in seven said stalking had forced them out of their homes. Women are twice as likely to be victims of stalkers than men.

Cindy Dyer, director of the federal Office on Violence Against Women said: "The prevalence of these electronic devices gives stalker another tool in his tool kit, makes it easier to stalk and increases victims' fear. It doesn't increase the number of stalking offenders, but it sure makes their job easier."

More than one-third of the victims reported being followed or spied upon; some said they were tracked by electronic monitoring, listening devices or video cameras. About 21 percent said they had been attacked by their stalker - with the forms of assault ranging from a slap to rape.

Most, nearly 75% of victims tend to know their stalker, most commonly a former spouse or ex-boyfriend/girlfriend, sometimes a relative or co-worker.

"The public tends to perceive of stalking as something that happens to celebrities who have a stranger follow them around," said report co-author Katrina Baum. "This study tells us that stalking is not a stranger phenomenon."

People who were divorced or separated were more vulnerable to stalking than other marital categories, and those aged 18-24 were more likely to be stalked than older people.

The biggest fear of stalking victims was not knowing what would happen next (46% of victims) and fearing that stalking would go on forever (29%). Nine percent of victims said their worst fear was death.