Cyberbullying
Cyberbullying
Cyberbullying is a fast growing trend that is tipped to be more harmful than school yard bullying. Research shows that around 50% of teenagers have had mean, threatening or embarrassing things said about them online.
The age of contacts getting in touch with Kids Help Line to report cyber bullying showed that 10-14-year-olds had the highest rate at 51 per cent, closely followed by 15-18-year-olds at 44 per cent, 19-25-year-olds at 5 per cent and 5-9-year-olds at 2 per cent (The Bendigo Advertiser; June 3rd 2011).
Cyberbullying refers to bullying through mobile phones text messages, emails, phone calls, internet chat rooms, instant messaging and websites such as MySpace and Facebook.
Knowing about the different types of ways you can be bullied can help with staying safe and aware online and ensure that you don’t inadvertently participate in the behaviour.
CYBER bullying can happen to anyone. It can be upsetting and stressful, impacting on different areas of your life including self esteem, relationships, work and study.
No type of bullying is harmless. In some cases, it can constitute criminal behaviour. Most victims can suffer shame, embarrassment, anger depression and withdrawal and in severe (and extreme) cases it has led to suicide. There is state and territory laws that relate to threatening and harassing behaviour which can be used when there is a specific threat to someone’s physical safety and well being.
In September 2010 the Victorian Government announced a $10.6 million eSmart program to tackle cyber bullying in every Victorian public school. This increased concern over bullying has led to the introduction of the Crimes Amendment (Bullying) Bill 2011 which broadens criminal law offences by extending existing laws dealing with stalking. This new law gives victims of bullying more options to deal with bullying behaviours. In the most severe cases, bullying behaviours can now be treated as a crime. Bullying behaviour is a course of conduct that includes:
- making threats
- using abusive or offensive words within hearing of a person
- doing something that is offensive when a person is present
- direct abusive or offensive acts towards a person
- acting in any other way that could reasonably be expected to make a person:
- feel apprehension (think that something bad is going to happen)
- fear for their own safety or for the safety of another person. (www.legail.aid.vic.gov.au).
Top Tips for Preventing Cyber Bullying:
- If your not friends with someone, don’t add them as a friend online.
- Set your own online profiles so you can control who has access to them.
- Be careful who you share your phone number, email address and user IDs with.
- Remove a person from your contact list if the relationship ends badly.
- THINK BEFORE YOU POST IT! If you post something mean on someone’s profile, it could encourage them to cyber bully you in retaliation.
- Learn how to block communications and where to report cyber bullying.
- Find out who you can talk to at school, home, work etc… if you are experiencing cyber bullying.
- Don’t share your password with anyone, not even your best friend.
- Log out of your accounts properly!
You can get further help and information from the following sites if you or someone you know is experiencing cyber bullying. Take a stand against cyber bullying!
- Kids Help Line (1800 55 1800) or http://www.kidshelp.com.au
- Lifeline (13 11 14) or http://www.lifeline.org.au
- Cybersafety Contact Centre
Tel: 1800 880 176
Email: cybersafety@acma.gov.au
