Cyberbullying or cyberbullying occurs when electronic communication media such as text messages, emails, instant messages, and social media updates are misused to threaten or embarrass someone. Anyone can experience bullying, but this type of bullying is most common among teenagers. The consequences or effects can be as severe as the direct bullying. Keep in mind that cyberbullying is not the victim's fault. If you are being bullied, you can deal with it by blocking the perpetrator on the internet and reporting the incident to the authorities.
Step
Part 1 of 4: Recognizing the Signs of Cyberbullying
Step 1. Watch for signs of violence
Whether you're afraid of being bullied yourself or as a parent you don't want your little one to experience, the best way to detect cyberbullying is to pay attention to the signs. Cyberbullying can occur in the form of harassment to its victims through email, instant messages, short messages, or other forms of electronic communication. Violence occurs when the perpetrator directly contacts the victim through one or more of the following messages:
- Messages contain hate or threats. Messages like this take the form of insults, attempts to control someone's behavior by threatening to reveal embarrassing information, or threats of violence.
- Embarrassing or threatening photos or videos.
- Some unwanted emails, instant messages, or text messages (regardless of their content).
- Lies about someone to tarnish their image or reputation.
Step 2. Watch for common signs of humiliation on the internet
Another common form of cyberbullying occurs when the perpetrator harasses the victim through insults in a public “space,” instead of contacting the victim directly. Bullies can use public tactics, such as spreading rumors and gossip through social media, text messages, and other tools. Other ways to commit public insults via online platforms include:
- Posting of embarrassing messages on social media sites, blogs and other public spaces.
- Sharing embarrassing or explicit photos or videos via social media websites and text messages.
- Create a website that contains photos, insults, and rumors that slander the victim.
Step 3. Watch for signs of fraud/impersonation by perpetrators on the internet
Another less obvious (but equally dangerous) form of cyberbullying occurs when the perpetrator attacks someone by impersonating them as a “way” to insult or punish the victim. Sometimes, the perpetrator creates a screen/user name that is almost the same as the name used by the victim. After that, the perpetrator uses the name to create an embarrassing or threatening situation for the victim.
In such cases, the perpetrator will be more difficult to identify. However, you can report cases of fraud / impersonation to the website or service provider used
Part 2 of 4: Taking Steps to Stop Bullying
Step 1. Ask the offender to stop the behavior
Sometimes, the abuser initially relates as a friend, ex-lover, or someone you know well. If you can still have a good discussion with the perpetrator, ask him to stop what he is doing. Talk about the problem in person, not via email or text. Get your message across clearly and decisively, and say, “I saw what you said about me on Facebook. It was inappropriate and hurt my feelings. I want you to stop saying those things.”
If you don't know the bully, or if you're being bullied by a group of people, there may not be any point in discussing or chatting with the bully
Step 2. Do not respond to messages from the perpetrator
If discussing or chatting with the abuser isn't the right move, don't respond immediately to text messages, instant messages, emails, or other forms of communication you receive from the abuser. He just wants to trigger a reaction from his target so replying to his message will only make things worse. The best thing you can do is ignore it.
Also, don't threaten the perpetrator back. If you send him a threatening message because he's upset, the abuser will only be triggered to show bad behavior. Apart from that, you can also get into trouble
Step 3. Save evidence of bullying
Take screenshots or save every email, text, instant message, social media post, and other evidence of bullying you've been through. Note the time and date of delivery/upload. If you can't take screenshots of the annoying messages, you can copy/paste the messages and save them on your device's hard disk.
- By retaining as much information as possible about the offender's behavior, you can determine how to stop the behavior.
- You can also present this evidence to the authorities to prove that you are being bullied.
Step 4. Block the perpetrator on all online platforms
Immediately block the way for the perpetrator to annoy you on the internet by blocking direct communication with him. Take advantage of social media privacy settings to ensure that perpetrators can no longer communicate with you. Take the following steps to protect yourself:
- Remove perpetrators from email contacts and block communication on instant messaging platforms.
- Remove the offender from social media networks and use online privacy settings to ensure they can't contact you again.
- Block the perpetrator from sending you text messages.
Part 3 of 4: Getting Outside Help
Step 1. Tell a trusted adult that you are cyberbullied
If you are a child or teenager, ask an adult for help. Parents, teachers, principals, and school counselors have the power to stop the situation before it worsens. Don't assume that problems will just go away; immediately report the bullying you are experiencing to stop it.
You may be compelled to allow bullying rather than highlight it. But if you allow the bullying to continue, the abuser will feel that there is no punishment for him if he bothers others
Step 2. Talk to the school administration if you are experiencing cyberbullying
Tell the authorities what happened, and describe the form of bullying you experienced. If you're not comfortable talking to the principal directly, talk to your favorite teacher or school counselor. Every school has bullying regulations, and more and more schools are now implementing specific plans to stop cyberbullying.
- Regardless of the applicable school regulations, it is the duty of the administration to solve bullying problems.
- If you're a child or teenager, understand that it's a good idea to bring bullying to school. Other children at school may also experience cyberbullying. Schools must be notified so they can take steps to end bullying.
- If you are a parent, hold a meeting with the principal to address the issue head-on.
Step 3. Report perpetrators to service providers and social media sites
Cyberbullying usually violates the terms of service applied by social media site managers, mobile operators, and other service providers. Read the terms or policies set by the service and take steps to report threatening behavior. The service provider can determine penalties for perpetrators or delete their accounts as a follow-up to reporting.
You may need to send a note/message from the abuser as proof that you are being bullied
Step 4. Contact law enforcement for more serious cases of bullying
Sometimes, bullying can be categorized as a crime that is outside the jurisdiction of the school and the service provider. If the bullying involves any of these elements, contact the police in your city or report it to the police officer on duty in/around the school.
- Threats of violence or death.
- Sex-related photos or descriptions of sex acts. If the photos displayed are photos of children, this bullying can be categorized as child pornography.
- Photos or videos taken or recorded in secret, without the victim knowing.
- Short messages or messages on the internet that contain hate and alienate or annoy the victim based on their race, gender, religion or sexual identity.
Part 4 of 4: Preventing Cyberbullying
Step 1. Do not share sensitive personal information on the internet
Bullies often use photos, status updates, and personal information found on the internet to harass their targets. You can share information about yourself on the internet, but never reveal things that other people shouldn't know. If you want to have a serious and personal chat with a friend, do so in person, and not through a tweet, Facebook post, or Instagram comment.
- For example, don't take a nude selfie and then upload it to your personal Tumblr page.
- Information typed into Facebook comments, Tumblr posts, or Instagram comments can land in the hands of bullies. Try not to discuss personal information in depth on the internet.
Step 2. Don't engage in cyberbullying behavior
If you feel marginalized or bullied, you may be tempted to vent negative feelings into acts of bullying to make you feel empowered. However, cyberbullying is still wrong, even if you do it for that reason. Your behavior can influence the actions of others so make sure that you don't support cyberbullying by setting a good example for others.
If your friends start harassing someone online or via text messages, don't join them. Ask them to stop their behavior and tell them that cyberbullying can have just as harmful effects as bullying in person
Step 3. Install parental control programs or applications on computers and smartphones
These programs or apps can block attempted bullying and protect your little one from inappropriate content on the internet. If you don't already have this program, ask your parents to install it.
If you are a parent, immediately install a protective program (or activate a privacy app) as a protective measure
Tips
- Keep in mind that there may not always be a clear reason someone engages in cyberbullying. Sometimes, a person annoys or annoys others because he feels his own anxiety or insecurity. In this case, the bullying is not your fault.
- Sometimes in cyberbullying, a person can take revenge on his ex-girlfriend by spreading naughty photos.
- Don't take photos or videos of someone without their knowledge or permission. It is against the law to secretly record other people's behavior when they feel they are not being watched.
- Never share photos or videos of anyone that you think is explicit, embarrassing, or could be used to attack the person in question.
- If you live in the US and are a victim of cyberbullying, find out how to report incident information at this link:
