What Is Cyberbullying?
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Cyberbullying Contents 1. What Is Cyberbullying 2. The Dangers Of Cyberbullying 3. How Is Cyberbullying Different From Regular Bullying 4. How To Tell If Your Child Is Being Cyberbullied 5. How To Tell If Your Child Is Cyberbullying Someone Else 6. Why Do Children Cyberbully 7. What To Do If Your Child Is Cyberbullying 8. What To Do If Your Child Is Being Cyberbullied 9. Parents Top 10 Questions About Cyberbullying 10. Statistics Of Cyberbullying 2015 Page 2 www.keepchildrensafeonline.com 1. What Is Cyberbullying? The definition of Cyberbullying is ‘the use of electronic communication to bully a person, typically by sending 1 messages of an intimidating or threatening nature’. As the definition suggests, Cyberbullying can take many forms. Just about any type of electronic communication can be used to bully or intimidate somebody, whether it’s via texting, email, instant messengers, chat rooms, multiplayer games and so forth. Here is a list of some (but by no means all) of the possible sources of Cyberbullying: • Texting • Phone Calls • Social Media • Chatrooms • Forums • Messaging & Photo Apps like WhatsApp and Snapchat • Online Multiplayer 1 Oxford English Dictionary Page 3 www.keepchildrensafeonline.com Of course, it can be tricky to know what is and isn’t Cyberbullying, as sometimes children say mean things to each other online, but one wouldn’t consider it any more than childish name-calling. The key distinction to make is that Cyberbullying is generally characterised by repeatedly causing harm, whether that is through repeated incidents or a single malicious incident that has lasting repercussions. Some examples of Cyberbullying include: Cyberstalking Cyberstalking is where somebody ‘stalks’ the victim online, usually sending multiple messages or just making it clear that they are watching the victim’s online life. The aim is to make the victim fear for their safety, both online and in real life. Harming reputation Cyberbullying is often used to spread rumours or damaging lies designed to ruin somebody’s reputation. Since most children don’t care about the truth of any rumours it is often very effective at ruining the victim’s reputation and can lead to them becoming ostracized or bullied further. Harassment Harassment, similarly to Cyberstalking involves the Cyberbully relentlessly sending insults, threats and cruel messages to a victim. Harassment is usually constituted by the relentless and tireless nature of the messaging. Impersonating Another example of Cyberbullying is where somebody impersonates somebody else as a means of causing them anguish or damaging their reputation. They may also impersonate the victim for the same reasons, and this sort of tactic has become much easier for bullies who have access to social media, as all of the victim’s information is often available to see. Provocation Sometimes called ‘flaming’, this is where a Cyberbully purposefully harasses or aggravates the victim in order to start a fight. It can be particularly hostile and harmful, as the victim may be drawn into responding which could lead to them getting in trouble or bullied further. Password theft A common type of Cyberbullying is the bully gaining access to the victim’s online accounts by learning their password. The bully then changes the victim’s passwords, effectively locking them out of their accounts. This is particularly common with online gaming accounts. Bullying websites or pages Sometimes, a Cyberbully may create a page on social media or even an entire webpage dedicated to causing harm to a victim. Such sites and pages may contain anything from pictures to videos to hurtful comments. Page 4 www.keepchildrensafeonline.com Use of images Cyberbullies often post embarrassing or offensive images of their victims in order to humiliate them. They are often fake, but the damage is done nonetheless. Explicit photos sent either willingly or unwillingly by teenagers are often circulated as well, which is especially harmful to the victim. Attacks on computers Even a few years ago this method of Cyberbullying would have been unthinkable, but a more and more common choice for bullies is to send their victims emails or messages with Trojan Horse viruses or spyware, thus infecting the victim’s computer. Increased computer literacy amongst children and teenagers means that attacks like this are becoming much easier. Swatting A relatively recent type of Cyberbullying and one of the most dangerous, Swatting consists of the Cyberbully discovering the victim’s home address and calling the local police force, claiming to be in the victim’s address with weapons, hostages or similar. The intention is to have armed police storm the victim’s house which can lead to serious injury or even death for the victim and their family, not to mention the emotional trauma suffered. Page 5 www.keepchildrensafeonline.com 2. The Dangers Of Cyberbullying Cyberbullying can have a very serious toll on the mental wellbeing of the victim, especially if the victim is young. Here are some of the main consequences of cyberbullying: Hurt feelings Hurt feelings may not seem serious, but young children especially are susceptible to far more negative side effects as a result of having their feelings hurt. Sadness Cyberbullying can easily wear down a child, causing them to become constantly miserable. A general sadness is not the same as depression. Anxiety Anxiety is a very serious and often overlooked issue in children and adults, and a major cause of it can be bullying as a child. Cyberbullying makes the problem even worse, because it isolates the victim even more than conventional bullying, which can lead to the victim withdrawing and avoiding social situations. Depression or other more serious mental health problems Like anxiety, depression is often overlooked in children, but it is absolutely possible for children, especially victims of bullying and Cyberbullying, to become depressed. The fact that a cyberbully can continue to bully a child through their phone or their computer means that neither home nor being with friends is a ‘safe’ space for a child. Children who feel as though they cannot escape their bullies, especially at home can very easily become depressed. Anger In some cases, a bullied child can turn to bullying others as a means of coping. Bullying others can help a victim of bullying feel in control, thus causing the cycle of bullying to keep going. Shame Cyberbullying can cause a child to feel ashamed of themselves or something in their lives such as appearance, sexual orientation, race or money. Fear A child who is being cyberbullied may very well fear for their safety or the safety of their family, especially if threatened with violence, which is more common through cyberbullying than regular bullying due to the separation between bully and victim. Page 6 www.keepchildrensafeonline.com Low self-esteem As with all types of bullying, cyberbullying can lead to serious self-esteem issues in children, some of which can persist well into adulthood. Children are extremely impressionable, so being told hurtful things about themselves can have a very serious, detrimental effect on a child’s self-esteem. Inability to trust in others A bullied child can end up with a serious issue in trusting others, as they learn to become defensive and withdrawn when dealing with others. Like self-esteem issues, these can last well into adult life and seriously impact a child’s development. The withdrawal that can happen as a result of difficulty in trusting others can in turn lead to anxiety and depression. Page 7 www.keepchildrensafeonline.com 3. How Is Cyberbullying Different From Regular Bullying? Cyberbullying often happens between school age children, just like regular bullying, but unlike regular bullying, it can continue well into adulthood and further. One of the main issues with cyberbullying is that a combination of anonymity and the divide between the bully and the victim mean that a cyberbully is much less likely to stop when their victim is becoming upset. Some of the main differences between cyberbullying and regular bullying are also what make cyberbullying so dangerous. These include: VS Permanence Any material used to bully, whether it is written insults, comments or images can be preserved by anyone, including the bully, the victim or simply a stranger who has seen the abuse. This means that the victim can be repeatedly subjected to and reminded of the bullying. Audience size The sheer number of people who can view and witness cyberbullying is far higher than the number who could witness it in real life. Whereas in real life bullying might be witnessed by a playground or a class, online it may be witnessed and shared by hundreds or thousands of people. Unfamiliarity The surge of young people using social media, as well as more conventional chat rooms, means that children can often be cyberbullied by a complete stranger. There have been numerous examples of anonymous cyberbullying campaigns targeted at individuals. Page 8 www.keepchildrensafeonline.com Social networking Social networks such as Facebook and Twitter allow people to cyberbully either in public or in private messaging and the public nature of them means that friends and other people the victim knows can easily become involved and aware of the bullying. Speed Cyberbullying can have a far faster impact than regular bulling. In the same way that the internet vastly increases the size of the audience who witness the humiliation of the victim, the speed at which the victim’s humiliation travels is much faster than in real life, which is traditionally through word of mouth. Page 9 www.keepchildrensafeonline.com 4. How To Tell If Your Child Is Being Cyberbullied Here are some of the common signs that your child may be experiencing cyberbullying: Change in online usage If your child starts to avoid using their mobile device or computer, it may be because they are afraid of being bullied on them.