CYBERBULLYING

1. CYBERBULLYING A Melbourne Athenaeum Library Cybersafety Information Guide Image source: http://www.publicdomainpictures.net/view-image.php?image=155182&picture=bullying-tactics

2. What is cyberbullying? Cyberbullying is bullying that is done through the use of technology. Using the Internet, a mobile phone or a camera to hurt or embarrass someone is considered cyberbullying. It can be shared widely with a lot of people quickly, which is why it is so dangerous and hurtful. Cyberbullying is a form of harassment and, like traditional bullying, many cyberbullying behaviours are illegal. Unfortunately the online environment can allow a greater degree of anonymity making it seem more difficult for people to be held accountable.

3. Adult cyberbullying When people talk about cyberbullying they often refer to bullying of children or teens, but cyberbullying of adults can be just as harmful to the victims and is a growing concern in today’s society. Image source: https://www.flickr.com/photos/jaceyf/4239673154

4. Types of cyberbullying Cyberbullying can refer to a wide range of activities, but the most common are exclusion, flaming, outing, denigration, impersonation, and image dissemination. In adult cyberbullying porn and marketing list insertion is also quite common, as is threats and dissemination. Image source: https://pixabay.com/en/cyber-bullying-bully-rumor-teasing-122156

5. Types of cyberbullying • Exclusion occurs by indirectly sending a harmful message to the target that they are not included in social activities. • Flaming is an online heated argument that often includes vulgar language. These arguments occur in public environments such as discussion boards and groups, chatrooms and newsgroups. • Outing is the public display or forwarding of personal text messages, emails or instant messaging. These often contain personal or sexual information. • Denigration occurs when cyberbullies send, post, or publish cruel rumours, gossip and untrue statements about a target to intentionally damage their reputation or friendships. • Impersonation is where cyberbullies impersonate the target and make unpopular online comments on social networking sites, forums and message boards and in chat rooms. Cyberbullies also set up websites that include vitriolic information, leading to the target being ostracised or victimised. • Image dissemination involves emailing images and videos of the target to peers, and/or posting them on sites such as YouTube. The main purpose is to humiliate and disparage and the cyberbullying target either has not given consent or does not know the images or videos are being disseminated. • Porn and marketing list inclusion involves signing the target up to pornography and/or junk marketing e-mail and instant messaging marketing lists. Often the bully will then tell parents, bosses or partners to try to discredit or punish the target. • Threats and dissemination involves sending messages worded in a severe, persistent or pervasive manner, causing the recipient undue concern. This is harassment and has legal repercussions.

6. Cyber-mobbing When a group sharing the same malicious mindset or intent target a single person it is referred to as cyber-mobbing. Cyber-mobbing is a particularly harmful method of carrying out cyberbullying which can increase feelings of loneliness and being an outcast. Image source: https://pixabay.com/en/smiley-emoticon-sad-face-icon-1635454 Image source: https://pixabay.com/en/cursor-hand-mouse-click-forefinger-148819 Image source: https://pixabay.com/en/mouse-pointer-arrow-ps-computer-1345874

7. How to avoid being a cyberbully Sharing content online makes it easy to accidentally be a perpetrator of cyberbullying. To avoid this: • Don’t share images, videos, or other content that you think may have been posted without the consent of the people involved. • Don’t post negative comments about content and report it if you see other people posting them. • Remember that third party editing of content does not automatically mean that consent has been given for the original content.

8. What to do if you’ve been bullied Although it can be confronting, it is important for both your safety and the safety of others that you deal with the bullying. • Record the bullying. Screen caps or saved messages are good for this. • Don’t respond directly to the bully/bullies. • Report the bully/bullies. • If possible cease contact with the bully/bullies. • Contact a support or counselling service, such as: • Lifeline - https://www.lifeline.org.au/ • Beyond Blue - https://www.beyondblue.org.au/ • R U OK - https://www.ruok.org.au/

9. What to do if you witness bullying One of the effects of bullying is to make the victim feel ostracised and worthless. The best way to combat this is to support the victims and help them to deal with it. • If possible record the bullying by taking a copy of the screen or saving the message. • Report the bully/bullies. • If you are in a position to advise the victim, tell them to cease contact with the bully/bullies. • Contact a support or counselling service – even when you aren’t the victim, being involved in these situations can be a traumatic experience. Image source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Take_A_Stand_Against_Cyberbullying.png

10. Thank you Thank you for taking the time to read this guide. If you have any further queries please don’t hesitate to ask library staff. Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.