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Fraud Insight
Cyberbullying is a problem, but how big or significant a problem remains to be determined.
Its apparent growth may be due to the increased prevalence of electronic devices, the obsession with going online and staying connected, and the awareness that these factors could cause problems, including exacerbating mental health issues such as substance use disorder.
According to some surprising cyberbullying statistics, the rate of the problem may be declining. Statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) show the rate of cyberbullying among high school students was 14,5 percent in 2017, down from 19 percent in 2016. But the Cyberbullying Research Center says in 2019, lifetime reports of cyberbullying were 36,5 percent, an all-time high.
Cyberbullying is a very harmful act that can lead to substance abuse issues, suicide, or poor school performance for bullying victims. .
What is cyberbullying?
Cyberbullying or electronic bullying is bullying that does not happen in person but via electronic devices—laptop or desktop computers, smartphones, tablets—and as much as 92 percent via online forums and message boards—Facebook, Twitter, Instagram—public or private.
Not every mean thing posted on social media is cyberbullying, just like not every mean or insensitive comment at school or a social gathering qualifies as bullying. The generally agreed-upon legal definition of bullying requires three elements:
The harm caused by the bully, behavior or words, must be intentional.
The target must have less real power, physical or psychological, than the bully.
The harm recurs over time.
Individuals involved in bullying or cyberbullying involvement include bullies, the bullied, and bystanders. Sometimes bullies are themselves bullied, creating another category: bully-victims.
So, starting conversations about online safety as early as possible can help prevent cyberbullying from happening to your child.
Start conversations early
Have age-appropriate conversations. No matter your child’s age, you can talk about cyberbullying. Doing this will help them:
Recognise bullying behaviours
Know when and how to report those behaviours
Have positive online experiences.
How can I protect a vulnerable child?
All children can enjoy the benefits of getting online with the right support.
In fact, children with vulnerabilities report more positive impacts from going online than children without vulnerabilities. So, if bullying happens online, taking away their access can have additional negative impacts.
If your child has a disability or other vulnerability, it is important to offer them the right support.
In most cases, this support will not look too different from that which is given to children without vulnerabilities. However, they may need more guidance and check-ins.
Set parental controls
Parental controls can help prevent cyberbullying. Around 1 in 10 children experience cyberbullying from people they do not know. This number increases to nearly two in five for children with vulnerabilities, according to our research.
Compared to other harms, this number is quite low. However, the impact of cyberbullying is much higher when compared with other online harms. In fact, 55 percent of children who have experienced cyberbullying from strangers say it has a high impact.
As such, setting parental controls is a good way to prevent cyberbullying, especially from strangers. You can limit who can contact your child, how your child can communicate and what sites or apps they can access.
Learn about cyberbullying
Stay on top of cyberbullying. It is important to fully understand the issues you want to protect your child from. Therefore, learning what you can about cyberbullying can help prevent it. Not only will you know what to watch out for, but your child will too. And that means they will know when it is time to come to you for help. – iternetmatters.org
Peter Tanyanyiwa
Online Reporter