cyberbullying what a parents needs to know

Cyberbullying: What Every Parent Needs to Know

One in three children have been bullied online, and one in four have been threatened online. Unfortunately, every day, cyberbullying cases only increase in number.

In fact, a recent study from the University of New Hampshire stated that 30% of all children have been victims of cyberbullying [1]. This is a serious concern for parents because their child’s well-being can be compromised if their son or daughter falls victim to cyberbullying.

Parents are often caught off guard when their child becomes a victim of cyberbullying because it occurs in the digital world. However, as parents, we must not be naïve about the risks that exist when we give our children access to technology. I’ve compiled key learnings that all of us as parents should know.

What cyberbullying looks like

Parents need to know what cyberbullying looks like in order to detect it before problems escalate into cyber-harassment or cyberstalking. Cyberbullying can take many forms depending on the technology involved. For example, a cyberbully can post negative comments about another person on social media, send mean text messages, create fake profiles to harass others online, or start rumors that are sent by email or posted on social networking pages. One of the most common cyberbullying tactics involves posting embarrassing photos of victims on websites like Instagram and Facebook. Photos are often taken without the victim’s knowledge, and in extreme cases, cyberbullies will threaten to post the pictures online if certain demands are not met. cyberbullying prevention tips Although cyberbullying is a problem that all children deal with, there are a number of cyberbullying prevention tips parents can use to help keep their children cyber secure. First, parents need to have open communication with their children. Parents should try to answer any questions about the cyberbullying their child may be experiencing. This allows you to help them navigate cyberbullying issues, and it keeps cyberbullying from being a secret issue between your child and an online friend. Parents should also teach their children about cyberbullies and cyberbullying behavior. The more your child knows about cyberbullies, the more cyberbullies can be held accountable, and cyberbullying behavior will decrease.

Other cyberbullying prevention tips include:

  • have a parental control software plan of action
  • monitor activity on social media accounts
  • know what apps your child uses and how to use them
  • report cyberbullying behavior children should not give cyberbullies a reaction.

If a cyberbully is writing mean comments, your child should ignore them and save any evidence. Often cyberbullies are friends of your child; this makes it harder for your child not to give a reaction or tell an adult.

While cyberbullying is a serious problem, there are ways parents can help their children stay cyber secure while online.

In my opinion, the most important help parents can provide is to have ongoing and open communication with their kids about their online activity and not be hesitant to monitor your child’s online activity.

Dale here, doing all I can to help keep mine and your family safe and smart with the technology we use.

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