INTRODUCTION:

Cyberbullying or cyber harassment is a form of bullying or harassment using electronic means. It’s are also known as online bullying. It can include such acts as making threats, sending provocative insults or racial or ethnic slurs, gay bashing, attempting to infect the victim's computer with a virus, and flooding an e-mail inbox with nonsense messages. The problem is compounded by the fact that a bully can hide behind an electronic veil, disguising his or her true identity. This makes it difficult to trace the source, and encourages bullies to behave more aggressively than they might face-to-face¹

CYBER BULLYING PREVALENCE:

Cyber bullying typically starts at about 9 years of age and usually ends after 14 years of age; after 14, it becomes cyber or sexual harassment. It affects 65-85% of kids. 90% of middle school students polled had their feelings hurt online. 65% of their students between 8-14 have been involved directly or indirectly in a cyber bullying incident as the cyber bully, victim or friend and 50% had seen or heard of a website bashing of another student urvey of students nationwide².

HOW IS CYBERBULLYING DIFFERENT FROM TRADITIONAL BULLYING?

Ÿ Victims often don’t know who the bully is or why they are targeted

Ÿ Viral – large number of people can find out about it very quickly

Ÿ Can be done from a distance and the bully doesn’t’t have to see the person’s response (impersonal)

Ÿ Many adults don’t have technical skills to monitor or respond

Ÿ This has caused adults to be slow to respond which, in turn, gives the cyberbullying the belief that there are little to no consequences³

TYPES OF CYBERBULLYING:

Ÿ Flaming

Online “fights” using electronic messages with angry and vulgar language

Ÿ Harassment

Repeatedly sending offensive, rude and insulting messages

Ÿ Denigration

“Dissing” someone online. Sending or posting cruel gossip or rumors about a person to damage his/her reputation or friendships

Ÿ Impersonation

Breaking into someone’s account, posing as that person and sending messages to make the person look bad, get that person in trouble or danger, or damage that person’s reputation or friendships

Ÿ Outing and Trickery

Sharing someone’s secrets or embarrassing information or images online. Tricking someone into revealing secrets or embarrassing information, this is then shared online

Ÿ Exclusion

Intentionally excluding someone from an online group, such as a “buddy list”

Ÿ Cyberstalking

Repeatedly sending messages that include threats of harm or are highly intimidating. Engaging in other online activities that make a person afraid for his/her safety⁴

WHO IS THE CYBERBULLY?

According to www.stopcyberbullying.org, there are generally five types of people who cyberbully:

1. Power Hungry

2. Retaliating Victim

3. Mean Girl

4. Vengeful Angel

5. Inadvertent Cyberbully

Power Hungry:

· Seeks attention from peers

· Maintains control by intimidating victim

· Want reaction

· Controlling with fear

Retaliating Victim:

· Was cyberbullied or bullied in past

· Seeks revenge on bullies

· May be less popular, but usually has above-average computer skills

Mean Girl:

· Bullies for entertainment value and to alleviate boredom (i.e. @ slumber party)

· Aims to increase her own popularity by putting others down

· Often do in a group

· Intimidate on and off line

Vengeful Angel:

· Seeks revenge on behalf of those who have been bullied

· Aims to protect friends

· Doesn’t’t see themselves as a cyberbully

Inadvertent Cyberbully:

· Uses internet carelessly, without considering potential impact on others

· Does not intentionally hurt others

· Role-play

· Responding

· May not realize it’s cyber bullying³

WARNING SIGNS – VICTIM:

1. Unexpectedly stops using computer or cell phone

2. Nervous or jumpy when IM or email appears

3. Uneasy about going to school or doesn’t want to go to school

4. Appears to be angry, depressed or frustrated after using computer or cell phone

5. Avoids discussions about what they are doing on computer or cell phone

6. Becomes abnormally withdrawn; loss of friends³

WARNING SIGNS – BULLY:

1. Quickly switches screens or closes programs

2. Gets unusually upset if computer or phone privileges are restricted (That’s every teen isn’t it! LOL)

3. Avoids discussions about what they are doing on computer or cell phone

4. Appears to be using multiple accounts or ones not their own⁴

RESPONDING TO CYBERBULLYING:

1. Save evidence – emails, IM, blogs, web pages (print out all instances + don’t delete any messages received)

2. Try to identify cyberbully, if possible

3. Calmly and strongly tell them to stop

4. Stop or remove material – contact ISP, website, etc.

5. Contact parents of cyberbully

6. Contact school

7. Contact police⁴

CYBER BULLYING LEGAL ISSUES:

‘Offsite Internet Activities and Schools’ ‘Within School Authority’ Guidelines:

· Clear-cut threats

· Clearly disruptive of school discipline

· Student accesses or works on website in school

· School owned website or school-sponsored project website

· Any proof of in-school impact (psychosocial, behavioral or academic impact on others)

· Proof the student’s website or harassment has had impact on staff

· Violation of Acceptable use policy⁵

CYBER BULLYING LEGAL ISSUES:

Criminal Law Limits;

The following kinds of speech can lead to arrest & prosecution:

· Making threats of violence to people or their property

· Engaging in coercion

· Making obscene or harassing phone calls

· Harassment or stalking

· Creating or sending sexually explicit images of teens

· Sexual exploitation

· Taking a photo of someone in place where privacy expected⁶

REFERENCE:

1. Smith, Peter K.; Mahdavi, Jess; Carvalho, Manuel; Fisher, Sonja; Russell, Shanette; Tippett, Neil (2008). "Cyberbullying: its nature and impact in secondary school pupils". The Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry. 49 (4): 376–385.

2. Hinduja, S.; Patchin, J. W. (2009). Bullying beyond the schoolyard: Preventing and responding to cyberbullying. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press. ISBN 978-1-4129-6689-4.

3. Hu, Winnie (1 October 2010). "Legal Debate Swirls Over Charges in a Student's Suicide". New York Times. Nate Schweber. Retrieved 1 December 2016.

4. Chapin, John (2014-08-17). "Adolescents and Cyber Bullying: The Precaution Adoption Process Model". Education and Information Technologies. 21 (4): 719–728.

5. Ybarra, M.L.; Mitchell, K.J.; Wolak, J.; Finkelhor, D. (Oct 2006). "Examining characteristics and associated distress related to Internet harassment: findings from the Second Youth Internet Safety Survey". Pediatrics. 118 (4): e1169–77

6. Cyber Bullying: Student Awareness Palm Springs Unified School District Retrieved 5 January 2015

Received on 13.10.2018 Modified on 25.11.2018

Research J. Science and Tech. 2019; 11(1):

DOI: 10.5958/2349-2988.2019.00011.1