Much of cyber bullying centres around kids. But the case this week in Caledon proves it can happen to anyone.
What can peers and parents do if a friend or their own kid is involved? Here's a look.
What Is Cyber Bullying?
It's sending or posting cruel, threatening, or harmful text or images using the Internet or other digital devices such as cell phones.
What Parents Can Do
-Learn everything you can about the Internet and what your kids are doing online. Talk to them about the places they go online and the activities that they are involved in. Be aware of what your kids are posting on Web sites, including their own personal home pages.
-Encourage your kids to come to you if anybody says or does something online that makes them feel uncomfortable or threatened. Stay calm and keep the lines of communication and trust open. If you "freak out" your kids won't turn to you for help when they need it.
-Encourage kids to develop their own moral code so they will choose to behave ethically online.
-Talk to your kids about responsible Internet use.
-Teach them to never post or say anything on the Internet that they wouldn't want the whole world - including you - to read.
-Create an online agreement or contract for computer use, with your kids' input. Make sure your agreement contains clear rules about ethical online behaviour. Research shows that in homes where parents have clear rules against certain kinds of activities, young people are much less likely to engage in them.
-Take action if your child is being bullied online.
-Watch out for signs that your child is being bullied online - a reluctance to use the computer or go to school may be an indication.
-If the bully is a student at your child's school, meet with school officials and ask for help in resolving the situation.
-Report any incident of online harassment and physical threats to your local police and your Internet Service Provider (ISP).
-If your child is bullied through a mobile phone, report the problem to your phone service provider. If it's a persistent problem you can change the phone number.
What Kids Can Do
-Guard your contact information. Don't give people you don't know your cell phone number, instant messaging name or e-mail address.
-If you are being harassed online, take the following actions immediately:
-Tell an adult you trust - a teacher, parent, older sibling or grandparent.
-If you are being harassed, leave the area or stop the activity (i.e. chat room, news group, online gaming area, instant messaging, etc.).
-If you are being bullied through e-mail or instant messaging, block the sender's messages. Never reply to harassing messages.
-Save any harassing messages and forward them to your Internet Service Provider (i.e. Hotmail or Yahoo). Most service providers have appropriate use policies that restrict users from harassing others over the Internet - and that includes kids!
-If the bullying includes physical threats, tell the police as well.
