Category: Cyber Bullying

First video game which is ‘Tennis for Two’ made in 1958. Humankind invent first video games 62 years ago and still create a new video games. For this time video games become more popular and create a new topic, which is ‘Does video games affect people badly’.

Violent

With video games industry expansion a lot of game category created, one of them is violent games. There is concern among parents which is children who play violent video games. Children may copy acts from video games. Research gives that 97% of American teenagers play video games and 90% of children prefer violent to non-violent games. In another research shows us person which has aggressive behavior prefers to play more aggressive games. However, consume aggressive games may cause of more aggressive behavior. Scientists used two group to find the truth. One group plays violent games other group plays non violent games. Both groups are not affected in a short time of playing video games. Then, aggressive behavior was observed in the first group. It seems video games don’t affect everyone except people which playing long term video games.

Depression

In America 26% of adults suffer from depression. Statistics seem like getting worse in the future. A lot of people try to find a new ways to get rid of this annoying condition. Psychologist Brian Smith discovered people which play video games became more energetic, confident and emotionally positive. Video games effect two parts of their brain. One of the part of brain processes goals and motivation. The other part of the brain responsible for learning and memory. While depressed person brain become shrink. Video games can stop shrinking. Some depressed people may see video games an escape from reality. These people use video games to escape their problems instead of fix them.

Cyberbullying

The world of online games has growing. Liam Hackett build a charity which is working on anti-bullying. They discover 57% of the children had experienced bullying in online video games. 22% of children had stopped playing a game as a result. Dr. Sally Black said: “Griefers trap a victim and they will attack the victim through the game”, in an interview. Bailey Mitchell one of the victims of cyberbullying. He is playing online games since the age of 10. Mitchell has received death threats. He says: “Now, when I get message I don’t care. But when I was 10 years old why someone they being mean to me?’. Scientist also found that 47% of people said they had been bullying in online game, 29% of people said bullying did not affect their enjoyment.

Education

With the growing popularity of video games, many parents ask one question. Does video games affect their children’s education. Report from 2010, shows video games can hurt schoolwork. The Guardian report show us there is a positive links between educational achievement and video games in 2016. Scientists make their research with longer perspective. PsycNET researchers used 3,554 teens for two years. Scientists tracked reading, math ability and gaming habits. In Father’s reports, subject which plays eight hours a day makes a little negative impact on grades. With conclusion video games didn’t actually affect children’s core ability.

Mass Shootings

Video games are played all over the world specially South Korea and Japan which is lowest crime rates in the world but mass shootings are a specifically American problem. In 2017 Pew study found that 65% of adults believed video games cause to gun violence. Nancy Darling says “Violent people enjoy violent entertainment, and those games may make them more violent”. But what people think doesn’t match with studies. Harvard University (2015) and Western Michigan University (2016) found a connection between video games and violence were very weak. Oxford researchers used 1,000 teens to rate aggressiveness based on which games played and for how long. Research found that playing video games doesn’t make teenagers aggressive.

References

1. https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/501496/what-was-first-video-game
2. https://www.healthline.com/health-news/video-games-saints-or-psychopaths-082814#1
3. http://www.educationalneuroscience.org.uk/resources/neuromyth-or-neurofact/violent-video-games-make-children-more-violent/
4. https://www.forbes.com/sites/olliebarder/2019/02/15/new-study-shows-that-there-is-no-link-between-violent-video-games-and-aggression-in-teenagers/#178552e328e0
5. https://www.psychologicalscience.org/publications/observer/obsonline/video-game-mechanics-aggression.html
6. https://www.indy100.com/article/dangerous-countries-world-before-coronavirus-pandemic-travel-map-2020-9262311
7. https://www.headstuff.org/entertainment/gaming/depression-is-the-disease-video-games-might-be-the-cure/
8. https://www.usnews.com/news/best-countries/articles/2016-09-14/the-10-most-depressed-countries
9. https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-40092541
10. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-internet-bullying/a-new-type-of-cyberbully-hits-online-gaming-world-idUSN0343424320070705
11. https://www.forbes.com/sites/niallmccarthy/2018/10/29/new-report-cyberbullying-is-most-prevalent-in-india-infographic/#2ff490167537
12. https://www.romper.com/p/video-games-may-affect-your-kids-grades-new-study-finds-but-its-not-as-bad-as-you-might-think-11960923
13. https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2018/11/21/1655296/0/en/The-Majority-Of-The-World-s-Best-Education-Systems-Are-In-Asia-The-Best-Schools-Are-Future-Proofing-Their-Approach.html
14. https://www.sun-sentinel.com/health/fl-ne-video-games-20190809-oojdsuosojesrihtrzvjxdnjou-story.html
15. https://www.alec.org/article/violent-video-games-not-to-blame-for-mass-shootings/
16. http://thenationshealth.aphapublications.org/content/49/8/1.2
17. https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2019/8/5/20755092/gun-shooting-video-game-chart

When we using a Technology, we have a right to use it. But sometimes there is a policy to use it. Because Technology is around the world, so people would see it. Technology is There are a Behavior when we using Technology, which is a creating tool that processing action. Just easier to understanding is that a skills and technique to do something or to accomplishment of object. Which is use it for study, works or even for play. People more known uses technology is for social. Social is interacting with others people. Since many people like to interacting each other’s. They want more to interact with others people around the world. That’s why when technology meets social it become evolving and improve for the social or even for the technology. That’s why it called social media. Which is network to people around the world. Media is a mass communication such as Publishing books or more, broadcasting and Internet. Social media is application or website that people can share and create in social networking such as Instagram, Twitter, Facebook and many more. Social media uses for tell people that what we’re doing right now or sharing how their day is. Sharing what they like, their hobby, what food they like and many more. Also, to express their felling’s through photo or a word.

Ethical behavior when using technology is ethical word means honest, fair, honorable. Which is we already knowing that ethical behavior is behavior or being honest and good. But in using of technology. Based on “simplecable.com” said that Technology Ethics are principles that can be used to govern technology including factors such as risk management and individual rights. It just same meaning but different word. based on “businessdictionary.com” is tends to be good for business and involves demonstrating respect.

There are seven topics that I have to choose only one. Online Harassments, Unwarranted surveillance, Copyright infringement, Cyber Scam, Cyber Terrorism, Cyber Extortion and Cyber Warfare. I choose Online Harassments. Based on “Betterinternet.com” Online Harassments is online behavior that goes out of the way to causes trouble for someone by intimidating, threating, or humiliating them, and can have serious social, psychological or even physical consequence And it has a different category which is Online Racism, Cyber Bullying, Online predator, Cyberstalking and Internet troll. Again, I have to choose one of them, which is I choose Cyber Bullying. Since I experience it, then I have to choose it, because maybe I can help people that struggling with cyber bullying. Based on “stopbullying.gov” said that Bullying is unwanted, aggressive behavior among school aged children that involves a real or perceived power imbalance. But the cyber is on another world that we can’t see a real person. It just only a photo of our profile. Technology is we connect with all people around the world that we know most of them but also that we don’t know each other. More people that actually don’t know who people are this.

Cyber bullying happens in aged of a teenager. But not only that. People who been cyber bullying is people that in happy situation or just a regular situation. Depends on what situation is and depends with the person who kind like to bullying. A person who like to bullying people in real life, they also carried away in online. People who like to bullying is a person who want’s their happiness gone. They want to suffer they own life. And a person who like to bully is laughed at the victims. But cyber bully can be happening anywhere and any ages. Issues happens about cyber bullying is anytime. we just won’t know when cyber bullying will occur. however, sometimes most people who become victims are people who cannot be socialized or who are usually categorized by the perpetrators as ‘weird”.

In the first place, sometimes a person who want to cyber bullying is a person who don’t want to see people being happy. Sometimes, they are jealous of what we have. But sometimes, they also cyber bullying because of deficiency. Quoted from website called “heralmailmedia.com” says that bullies are jealous, unhappy or just unkind people. While there is some truth to those perceptions, the reality is more nuanced. Cyberbullying, in fact, can come from more mundane feelings, like boredom. Access and opportunity can also lead students to bully others online. Some students also reported that online bullying made them feel better. These students reported feeling ‘funny, popular and powerful’ online. The study also explained that a natural desire for attention can cause students to cyberbully. Forty percent of students who cyberbully say they do not feel any feelings of guilt or shame after the bullying, according to a large study of students published in the “American Journal of orthopsychiatry”.

The issues I want to lift is her name Cinta kuya. She is a singer and magician back then. And she has a TV shows called cinta juga kuya. She is really famous because of how she brings shows with her unique own style. Because of how is she really young back then, people really like it. How Innocent she is and funny she is. but time passes quickly. now she is in his teens where more obstacles for her. not because of his sharp lessons, but her social life. Her life become different. Because how she is meeting with someone that same aged with her. She really don’t know how to socialize to people that share same age with her. It’s not only that, but also how people looks to her that rich and have everything that she got in Instagram. Now since social media become a huge role in our daily life. But actually she is a human just like people in this world. Caused of that because of people jealous about how she have everything. This issues happened when she still young, but she didn’t know what is social media back then is. When she getting older and become teenagers. She knows how the social media work is. A lots happening when she posting something what she like and people starting to comment which she don’t want to see it. But indeed she see the comment that makes her life more complicated and hard to take it. Because of her young aged and she doesn’t know how to use internet back then. She always cry by bad comment such as “you very ugly” and others that makes her sad. Where happen is the issues comes is on social media. When she using a social media. But at first the comment still being nice. But comes day and she post what she like. Since then, since she post her hobbies and many others that makes her happy. She got a comment by judging her hobby, her post and others. It makes her condition bad and her confident not that as confident back then she is.

This issues happens a lot with teenagers that have a social media. Based on website “techaddiction.ca” said that There are many reasons why kids and teens become cyber bullies. Usually however, cyber bullies have some sort of insecurity. To protect their egos and feel superior, they make others feel bad about themselves. Some cyber bullies see it as a means to gain popularity and others do it to feel powerful or escape their own problems. At times, cyber bullies themselves may be bullying victims so they “prey” on other people to feel better about themselves.

Based on “Learnsafe.com” said that where it happens is Social Media. According to the Department of Health and Human Services, 71% of teens have profiles on multiple social media sites. Bullies can instantly post embarrassing or personal photos, send direct messages, create harassing group chats or post humiliating statuses directed toward their targets. These platforms often have privacy settings that may cause a bully to believe they can hide their actions from parents, teachers and other adults. Therefore, it is even more important to monitor their social media accounts. They may not be aware of the signs of cyberbullying, or they may be engaging in the harmful behaviors themselves. Based on “english.binus.ac.id” said that Cyber bullying is a great danger to the society. It causes harm to people and results negatively for, both, the bully and the victim. It is said that cyber bullying is a serious worldwide issue and that it needs to be resolved. If they cannot do cyber bullying anonymously, they will go as far as they will face claim other people only to do cyber bullying.

Based on “endcyberbullying.org” said that Back when many teenagers hung out in chat rooms, most of the cyberbullying reported took place in chat rooms. With the more recent changes in technology, the youth population has been drawn to social networking sites, like Facebook, and video sharing sites, like YouTube. As a result, there has been an increase in reports of cyberbullying on social networking sites and video sharing sites. In addition, instant messaging and texting appear to be common ways in which youth are harassing others.

The solution to get rid of cyberbullying is that we need to control what we posting too. Because of we already know what are the consequence what will happened if we positing. We need to know who are the people that follow us in social media. Of course the important things is people need to know or to be educated about cyberbullying. Need to learn how to handle something that makes them sad. But if it’s already happened, then what should they do is to make a distance between the cyberbullying and the victim. Because when you kept away, the person that been cyberbullying you will tired of it. Because of how you ignore them and don’t care about it. It is really unique technique when you’ve got cyberbullying by someone. Because sometimes there some people been like that and they don’t have any spirit. When you make a distance between the victim and the cyberbullying you need to stand up. Don’t be become weak. You need to be strong what they said that makes you angry and sad. but that’s the reality. Try to talk with someone that you trust. Don’t keep it buried. Because later there will be a wound in the heart. But if it’s getting worst then the only solution to keep them don’t attacking you, the delete your account. That is the best solution and unique solution I’ve know. Because when you delete your account, you don’t have to be worried about their words again. And you will be feel the freedom that you deserve to get it. It doesn’t mean to keep away from the problem but to avoid for our own benefit. Do not get revenge, because later on the problem will not be solved. If you still overthinking, try to talk with them but with our family members to stop the cyberbullying. To end the problem with peace, try to talk with the cyberbullying. If they don’t want to, then do not. Because be interpreted that the cyberbullying is afraid with us. But don’t feel being a champ. They might be come again. If yes, then try to some another solution.

Based on “visionlaunch.com” said that by saying nothing, we all empower bullies to keep doing what they are doing. Cyberbullies feel anonymous, but they are not. Even if you aren’t the target of a cyberbully, you may be able to report the behavior when you see it. This is something that we must all be willing to do, even if it seems scary at the time.

When we respond to bullying behaviors with a calm, logical reaction, we take the energy out of the experience for the bully. This may not stop the harassment right away, but it can over time. Walk away, block the bully, and speak with someone. That way you can empower yourself instead of letting the cyberbully have control over your life. “visionlaunch.com” said that When we respond to bullying behaviors with a calm, logical reaction, we take the energy out of the experience for the bully. This may not stop the harassment right away, but it can over time. Walk away, block the bully, and speak with someone. That way you can empower yourself instead of letting the cyberbully have control over your life.

To end this report, by the conclusion is whatever people trying to say the bad things about you, just ignore it. Don’t mind them or even. Try to stay positive in social media. Do not bring any bad things in social media. Might be them going to cyberbullying you. In the end of word try to talk with someone that you trust. Don’t keep it buried. Try to calm and try to accept the word and be a strong person by their word. it’s really hard to take the bad to become a positive vibe. However, over time will get used to it with the word that make you sad.

SOURCES

1. “What Are the Causes of Cyber Bullying?” English BINUS University, 22 June 2015, https://english.binus.ac.id/2015/06/22/what-are-the-causes-of-cyber-bullying/.
2. Rogers-Whitehead, Carrie. “What Really Causes Cyberbullying?” Herald, 17 Oct. 2018, https://www.heraldmailmedia.com/life/what-really-causes-cyberbullying/article_9ff3c3ed-b55c-5b89-9e04-a8c8dcbb9137.html.
3. “Issue of Cyberbullying Today.” UKEssays.com, 4 Sept. 2017, https://www.ukessays.com/essays/general-studies/issue-cyberbullying-8570.php.
4. “What Is Cyberbullying.” StopBullying.gov, https://www.stopbullying.gov/cyberbullying/what-is-it/index.html.
5. Lombardo, Crystal. “8 Solutions to Cyberbullying.” Vision Launch, 14 Jan. 2017, http://visionlaunch.com/8-solutions-cyberbullying/.
6. Canadian Centre for Occupational Health. “(None).” Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety, 23 Aug. 2019, https://www.ccohs.ca/oshanswers/psychosocial/cyberbullying.html.
7. Conrad, Brent. “Cyber Bullying – What It Is & Why It Happens.” TechAddiction, 25 Aug. 2019, http://www.techaddiction.ca/cyber-bullying-signs.html.
8. “Where Does Cyberbullying Commonly Occur?” End to Cyber Bullying Organization (ETCB), https://www.endcyberbullying.org/where-does-cyberbullying-commonly-occur/.
9. “Tips to Help Stop Cyberbullying.” ConnectSafely, 7 May 2018, https://www.connectsafely.org/tips-to-help-stop-cyberbullying/.
10. Bushman, Adam. “The Real Solution to Cyberbullying.” Positive Learning, Positive Learning, 25 Apr. 2016, https://www.positivelearning.com/blog/2016/4/25/the-real-solution-to-cyberbullying.

What are the problems and solutions of cyberbullying? Introduction The topic of cyberbullying was chosen because I am interested on learning how much of a problem this is and how to decrease this problem. Cyberbullying is linked to the topic of digital world. Social media and phones have become a necessity in most people’s lives. Although most of these online experiences end up being positive, many can also be negative. Using a form of technology to threaten or harass someone is known as cyberbullying, it is dangerous because it is usually anonymous or very hard to trace. (Ben-Joseph) This includes sending or sharing false, or mean content about someone else. (‘What is Cyberbullying.’) It can lead to depression, anxiety, and other health problems, especially for teenagers. There are many problems of cyberbullying, but there are multiple ways we can prevent cyberbullying from happening and solve this issue that is affecting many people all around the world. Often, cyberbullying can break anti-discrimination or sexual harassment laws. (Ben-Joseph) Global Perspective Analyse information The Cybersmile foundation is a global organisation committed to tackling all forms of digital abuse, harassment and bullying online. (Who we are – Cybersmile.) This organisation provides support for others, and provides resources and consultancy to governments, individuals, corporations, and educational institutions around the world. Cybersmile makes many campaigns across countries (Cybersmile Campaigns), and aims to make bullying “uncool”. On June 15th, Cybersmile Foundations set up Stop Cyberbullying day, in which celebrities and famous brands helped spread awareness to stop cyberbullying. Celebrities gave away signed merchandise, and these giveaways encouraged internet users to share their supportive and inspiring messages on social media using #STOPCYBERBULLYINGDAY and reached more than 1.2 million internet users.

Furthermore, this organisation is very helpful to everyone and has been extremely successful in making everyone aware of this issue, as well as preventing and teaching others how to respond to bullying. Their mission is to make sure everybody has the right to access and to enjoy the benefits that our new modern digital world offers – without the fear of bullying, threats and abuse. (Stop Cyberbullying Day | About. ) Personal response Although cyberbullying does not cause as much physical harm towards the victims than physical bullying, it creates emotional scars and can lead to self harm in many cases. I believe that The Cybersmile Foundation is doing the best they can because cyberbullying isn’t addressed often enough and people need to acknowledge there is a very big problem that needs to be solved. For this particular concern, I think that the global approach to this is for more people to become aware of this issue. Cyberbullying is especially harmful because for bullies, online bullying and harassment this could potentially be easier for them because they do not have to confront the person. (Ben-Joseph) This organisation is trying to help as much as they can, but without the help of others being aware of this issue, online bullying will continue to increase even more at a faster rate. The amount technology is being used nowadays is expanding, and the amount of cyberbullying has to decrease. Future scenarios/courses of action By talking more about these organisations, and telling close friends, relatives, classmates about how these organisations help to solve the problem of cyberbullying. Participating in the campaigns and supporting them will also help this problem. The No Bully organisation has come up with a No Bully System. Schools that use the No Bully System are solving 90% of the bullying. Using this system could ending a lot of the bullying happening.

Recently, findings from neuroscience, positive psychology and evolutionary biology indicate that all youth, including those involved in bullying, demonstrate compassion and inclusiveness when their school invests in the culture that support these behaviors. Sources evaluation These sources are reliable because The Cybersmile Foundation is a global organisation which has held many campaigns and is very well known. The website also explains exactly what it does and how it has helped spread awareness and try to prevent cyberbullying. National/Local Perspective Analyse information In Hong Kong, there aren’t that many people that are that aware of cyberbullying. Many of my relatives and close family do not even know what cyberbullying is, or just vaguely. Cyberbullying is an increasingly serious problem that needs to be solved as fast as possible. Self-harm and suicide is not unknown as a result of cyberbullying. These risks needs to be prevented and they need to be stopped. (International ) 300 out of 1,900 pupils from 28 secondary schools in Hong Kong, said they were cyber bullied while using social media apps. (Zhang ) According to a study by the Hong Kong Family Welfare Society in 2012 found that one in three students between Year 4 to Year 9 were victims of cyberbullying. (Rachel Blundy, Yupina Ng, Sarah Zheng ) In England, the rate of cyberbullying is similar to Hong Kong. There is so much technology used and it is so advanced that everyone can be an easy target to be bullied online. (‘You can End Bullying | no Bully.’) Comparing countries such as Hong Kong and England to a place like Sweden, the effects of cyberbullying on people are a lot different. In Sweden, 91% of people were aware of cyberbullying and its effects on humans. If people are more aware or this, they can prevent it. This is the reason rates of cyberbullying in a place like Sweden is a lot less then somewhere such as Hong Kong or England. In April 2018, statistics showed the overall awareness of cyberbullying in select countries worldwide. While in the UK, only 71% were aware of this big issue. Sweden has one of the best education systems in the whole world, so they often educate students about cyberbullying to make everyone aware of it.

Personal response I think using Sweden’s approach on trying to solve cyberbullying is better because from using the different techniques, Sweden’s percentage of cyberbullying has decreased and is a lot less than England. Comparing the national and local perspectives of England and Sweden showed that the more people were aware of how to handle the situation, the less people that suffered. From this we can see that because more people in Sweden knew about cyberbullying and how to deal with it, there was a less percentage of cyberbullying in Sweden than England. Negative online reputation could even end up affecting your university admissions, employment, etc. (‘What is Cyberbullying.’) Future scenarios/courses of action To help this problem, we could set up organisations and campaigns to try to put an end to it. This issue should be talked about regularly, parents should ask children if anything weird has happened lately online, or if there is anyone trying to harass or bully them. (Forssell ) Schools can set up more talks and bring guest speakers into school to talk about how to respond to online bullying, and how to prevent it from happening at all. (‘How to Handle Cyberbullying: A Parents’ Guide | Swedish Medical Center Seattle and Issaquah.’) The evidence that supports this is that even though the amount of technology used is increasing and that this problem is increasing hugely, the more people aware and the more organisations spreading awareness are helping people respond to bullying better. Sometimes bullying online is not recognised until it is too late, if people are more cautious online it will cause less harm to people online. Sources evaluation My sources and statistics of this section are reliable because I have cross referenced them with a few other websites and the facts are the same and accurate. Other information also matches the information we have found out. Some of these websites are organisations. Personal Perspective Analyse information Technology is a big part of our lives, a necessity nowadays.

Technology has benefited us in many ways, but as technology advances, more harmful things can start to happen online. There should be a rule enforced upon cyberbullying. This can prevent damage to our community and those of us in danger. Cyberbullying affects our lives greatly. It is everywhere and we do not notice it enough. Friends are getting bullied and getting abused digitally. Not enough people know about cyberbullying and the effects it has on others and themselves. Personal response Sometimes, my friends can get called inappropriate names and they start losing self-esteem. Peers have started to feel anxious and depressed. This can lead to even more serious health issues like self-harming and suicide, people can end up doing things they would not normally do all because of a cyberbully. A few have even been harassed online, and this needs to be put to a stop. I have seen numerous films and short clips on how cyberbullying can affect our everyday lives. In particular, a video on Amanda Todd. She was a victim of cyberbullying . Prior to her death, she posted a video on Youtube telling us her story on what life was like for her and how she had suffered. Amanda started to self-harm, diagnosed with depression, and tried committing suicide three times. She drank bleach, overdosed, and ended up hanging herself.

People sent her nasty comments and called her horrific names. If people had given her more support and stopped threatening her online, there is a chance she could still be alive today. Future scenarios/courses of action In the future, simple but effective solutions can be used to stop cyberbullying. Support your family and friends if something has happened to them. If you have noticed something unusual or there is an incident, talk to the school, your parents, and find a solution. Notice straight away if something surprising has happened, prevent someone bullying you online. Cyberbullying can easily be prevented if you are cautious online and be careful when talking to someone, especially if you do not know them. Conclusion Cyberbullying is a severe issue that is not acknowledged often enough. I think if people are more aware of this issue, it will put less people in harm’s way. Often teenagers are lured into the deepest, darkest voids of the internet and as a result end up being affected. Cyberbullying whilst dangerous tends to be an overlooked subject because many people are unaware of this. It only started to become an issue when the internet started to develop and social media became the only way people communicated with one another. In some case social media can help you connect with old friends or family across the world, however it also creates a space for strangers to seek you out. Social media platforms create a vulnerable outlet for strangers to attack, which reinforces the common saying we were told as children ‘stranger danger’.

In the population of university students, previous research has consistently shown that cyber victimization is negatively related to the victim’s self-esteem (Butt, 2019, Prihadi, 2019). (Butt, 2019) conducted a study to investigate the impact of cyberbullying on young people’s self-esteem and interpersonal trust. Based on the findings, the results indicated that cyber victimization is significant in predicting low self-esteem among young adults. Meanwhile, the finding by Prihadi (2019) also suggested that perceived cyber-victimization negatively impacts the state of self-esteem, and positively leads to perceived depression

Overall, the findings from previous studies support the statement that cyber victimization is a significant predictor of low self-esteem. Recent research on cyberbullying not only found that cyber victims have lower self-esteem than non-victims, but the cyber-bullies also found that suffer from low self-esteem (Kowalski & Limber, 2013; Patchin and Hinduja 2010, Aliyev).

In a study by Kowalski and Limber (2013) targeting sixth- to twelfth-grade students, the study found that students who were highly involved in cyberbullying tended to show lower self-esteem. This finding is consistent with the research by Patchin and Hinduja (2010), who found that cyber-bullies have lower self-esteem than those who do not participate in cyberbullying. Aliyev (2019) also found that the tendency of cyberbullying is significantly negatively associated with self-esteem, that is, when cyberbullying behavior increases, self-esteem decreases. In addition, the results of the study also show that female students have lower self-esteem than male students (Aliyev, 2019).

Among the population of university students, previous research has also shown that cyber perpetration is associated with the low self-esteem of cyber-bullies (Varghese, 2017; Butt, 2019). According to an online survey on the impact of cyberbullying on self-esteem, loneliness, depression, and attachment among university students, cyber-bullies were found that compared with non-bullies, they reported lower self-esteem and higher maternal attachment anxiety (Varghese, 2017). Moreover, Butt’s (2019) research also found that participating in cyber perpetration is observed to linked to low self-esteem among university students, and males also more likely to be involved in cyber perpetration than females. This study also found that there was a significant positive relationship between cyber perpetration and cyber victimization (Butt, 2019).

In summary, most of the results indicate that cyberbullies have low self-esteem. These results contrast with the assumption that cyber-bullies are more likely to obtain satisfaction and superiority from their aggressive behavior because the anonymity of cyberspace protects their Identity, so they tend to show higher self-esteem (Pulfey, 2013). There’s a possible reason on explaining why cyber-bullies have low self-esteem. According to the literature reviewed by (Butt, 2019), there was a cyclic relationship between the cyber-bullies and cyber-victims, which is cyber-bullies also tend to be cyber-victims. The internet platform is not anonymous as the perpetrators could be detected by victims. In most cases, the online platform is just one of the channels for bullies to bully the victims, and they are also bullying the victims in real life (Price et al, 2010). Therefore, in turn, as the victims retaliate, cyber-bullies may become future victims, thus leading to a sense of inferiority (Butt, 2019).

Everyone in the 21st century is addicted to the internet and technology. At first, we could not even imagine we would be able to talk to a person mile away but how we communicate with family and friends in a whole other country sitting at home as if they are sitting right in front of us. The Internet gave the world tremendous opportunities and possibilities but on the other hand, it also gave us new dangers. In today’s world, the new harassment that is occurring is cyberbullying. Lots of people, especially teenagers from middle and high school are the real victims of online violence, humiliation, and harassment. The main problem is that these kids do not even realize that they are being bullied.

Cyberbullying is an unfortunate concept when a person is getting threatened, dishonored, humiliated, tortured, and offended by some other person via text messaging, e-mails, or any source of digital technologies. Cyberbullies tend to post embarrassing information about a person online. The victim of cyberbullying can often be teased at different forums and through social media like Instagram, Facebook, etc., by a group of people. Cyberbullying situations can occur in many forms by different people of various characters, and the one thing that is alike is the humiliation and embarrassment of another person by not respecting their privacy.

A cyber-bully is usually a person who is a really wicked person who has multiple resources to torment other people. However, in the past few years, researchers state that sometimes cyber-bullies are teens who have problems themselves. The reason they behave in this manner could be because of parental/teen abuse, mental disorders, unbearable living circumstances, etc. The teenagers facing these problems try to channel their energy by simply entertaining themselves at the price of happiness of others, which is why these teens channel their discomfort and anxiety through aggression against others. Cyberbullying may also take place on the part of whole groups, just like real-life bullying in schools does.

There are many feelings that teens experience due to being abused and harassed via any digital technology. Feeling overwhelmed is one of the major problems these teens face due to the fact being targeted by cyberbullies is a terrible feeling especially if it’s a whole group of kids that are partaking in the activity. It is a terrible feeling like the entire world is against you and knows about your private life. At times, the pressure of dealing with bullies can cause kids to feel like the situation is more complicated and they get anxious about the situation. Another feeling that these teens face is feeling vulnerable and powerless because the victims of cyberbullying find it hard for them to find a safe place where they can be themselves without being judged or harassed. Typically, this is because this type of harassment usually takes place at their own home through their digital technology devices or different platforms of social media, at any time of day. They no longer have a safe place where they can feel safe and escape the bullies. For a victim, bullying is everywhere and not escapable.

Furthermore, these bullies are often anonymous, by which these teens feel more triggered and scared which can make them feel fear at every point of the day. Usually, cyberbullying is caused by the bullies who they know from their own community. Furthermore, the worst feeling that a teen can feel is being exposed and humiliated because cyberbullying occurs on the Internet and the stuff that these bullies expose online is usually permanent, meaning it cannot be completely erased. Teens know that once something is out in cyberspace, it will permanently negatively affect them for a lifetime, and it makes them feel afraid for long periods of time. When cyberbullying occurs, disgusting posts or pictures, or videos can be shared throughout the world with different people.

Conclusion

In conclusion, there should be more awareness of the harmful effects of cyberbullying. Cyberbullying tarnishes the mental health of the youth today and they feel more stress added to their day-to-day life. All in all, the youth and societies of today would be positively impacted if they were more aware and other individuals would be more sincere to the well-being of others.

Self-harm plays a big role in cyberbullying, it is a way for the victim to cope with their pain. Not only can the victim have self-harm or suicidal thoughts the effects of cyberbullying impact the number of teens inflicting harm on themselves. Over the years that we have been struggling with, they have made so many movies on cyberbullying, to show us how bad cyberbullying is. The 2011 movie Cyberbully, it portrays 3 young female teenagers navigating their way through high school and throughout social media. The depiction of social media and the horrors that come with it carefully takes audiences with the main character being bullied and harassed online by an unknown user. Taylor, the main character comes to a breaking point because of the amount of harassment and bullying, she decides to attempt suicide. Fortunately, Taylor survives and finds out the truth to which she brings awareness of cyberbullying to her school. Unlike Taylor, many teens die from suicide because of bullying online. Watching this movie was very sad and made me think about how real these situations are and how it can be so damaging to any person. Everyone needs to know about this and be aware when they are online and see things that are out of the norm, speak up, report it to an adult, or call 911. By speaking up and informing someone, you could save someone’s daughter or son.

Also, not only does cyberbully happen to girls, but happens to boys, transgender, and the LGBTQ community. There are just so many people that don’t agree on the same things and they act out of anger and they are full of hatred because they don’t want to see someone succeed. It’s sad to say that there are so many people like this in our world and yet there have been so many movies out and you think that by seeing this, they would stop.

Over 60% of students had reported that this tremendously impacted their ability to learn and go to school (Hinduja). Being bullied is something that we all need to be aware of and take action when we see or hear about it. If we were all aware of what is going on around us we could be such a big help in stopping the problems our world has

This topic is so important because there are so many teens today that are always facing some kind of bullying either at school or online. Some ways we can prevent this from happening is having parents keep track of their children’s usage online, having schools come up with new policies and training kids how to prevent it, improving social media networking, everyone should keep their profile on private, he or she should keep track of dates and evidence of cyberbullying and report it (Hinduja & Patchin, 2014). An article that I found on how “Instagram ‘Implicated’ In Teen Suicides As It Prepares To Merge With Facebook,” by Zac Doffman, talks about how Instagram was to blame for a grieving father’s daughter who died of suicide. Because Instagram along with other social media sites was hosting and distributing content that was contributing to mental health issues and suicides. The Forbes article interviewed the father of a daughter named Molly Russel, “the more I looked, the more there was that chill horror that… had been such profound effects on my lovely daughter. We went to one account Molly was following and what we found was just horrendous. They seemed to be completely encouraging of self-harm, linking depression to self-harm and suicide, making it seem inevitable, normal, graphically showing things like cutting, biting, burning, bruising, taking pills.” Instagram makes it so easy for users to make fake profiles or even post very harmful accounts/images, and this can easily trigger anyone who is going through a rough time such as cyberbullying or being bullied at school. Instagram along with other social media platforms can really take a toll on young American teens for the worst; as I was reading some articles on cases of avocado media impacting teens I came across one and as I was reading it I realized that social media seems not to care or take action when things happening on their platform. The news article NBCNews, published a story about a 15-year-old girl with red and braces who had killed herself in June because of bullying at school and on all social media platforms by her peers. Her aunt Sadie Smith said, “she was tormented on Facebook, Instagram, messaging platform Kik — where classmates would tell her to kill herself.” She did everything she can do to help her niece to stop the bullying but no one helped her, “I went to the police. I went to the school. I even contacted Instagram headquarters, and they didn’t do anything about it (Elizabeth Chuck),” this just shows how social media platforms don’t do anything to help stop bullying, they see it occurring on their platform but don’t take stand and they keep saying we need to end bullying and cyberbullying but they don’t even take action, until it’s too late to handle for the victim and they end up committing suicide because of how bad they are being bullied.

Cyberbullying is a worldwide problem and suicide is a vast impact on today’s generation. Technology has adapted so fast, therefore, improving social media, and can influence so many American Teens because they are so attached to their phones. American Teens cannot live without their phones; if you were to take a teenager’s phone they would not know how to survive because they live there life by their phones always attached to them. No individual should feel like they need to hide from being worried about being taken advantage of.

Cyber bullying is a kind of bullying that is done through many places through which you are connected to the social world. It is done by the means of SMS, Online app, and by social media. Cyber bully is done by sharing, posting false content about someone who they want to bully. It can also include the sharing of personal information about a particular person causing them to be humiliated or to get embarrassed in front of everyone. Most teenagers are the targets of these criminals. Cyber bullying makes the child sad and sometimes even angry. A 2012 study from the University of Nottingham and the University of Sheffield found that eight out of ten of the 320 adults surveyed across three different universities had been victims of cyberbullying in the last six months. About a quarter reported feeling humiliated, ignored, or being the subject of online gossip at least once a week.

The place where cyber bullying can occur:

• Social media sites like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, etc;
• Сan occur through SMS;
• Through emails.

What is social media surveillance?

Social media surveillance is also known as social media monitoring. It is used to track, monitor gather, or mine particular data about a particular person. It is done by particular companies or other organizations to know about their user’s opinions. This surveillance occurs in social media sites such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Google, YouTube, etc. The companies who provide these data create profiles to provide advertisements to the targeted users. Social media surveillance is very helpful for businessmen to grow up their businesses. For example, an app called the “TRUE CALLER “aims is to identify phone numbers by which the users are able to filter out calls, even if the number was even once called on your phone. The app uses your information through your phone and shows you details on the receiver’s phone. This all happens with the help of social media surveillance.

Causes

There are many causes of social media surveillance but the main cause of social media surveillance is to know what does a specific person thinks. It is used to monitor the people and try to grab attention towards the brands or to a specific product. Social media monitoring/social medial surveillance is also dome to divert one attention towards the competition. Not only it is used by the businessmen it is also been used by the government to keep an eye on the criminal or on those people who are suspected to be a criminal. They use it to keep an eye on them and get to know about what they are been doing on social media or to see what criminal acts are they doing on it. By doing this government are able to do many things. Even due to social media surveillance the business market has reached higher. According to research that “At least 40 of the 65 countries covered by this report have instituted advanced social media monitoring programs.” For example, in the United States, agencies within the Department of Homeland Security (DHS)—including Customs and Border Protection (CBP), Citizenship and Immigration Services, and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)—have used automated technology to collect and analyze personal information, with limited oversight and transparency.

Consequences

There are a lot of consequences of social media surveillance. This could help the new businessman to get knowledge about their customers what they like and what they don’t and grab their attention towards their products. The governmental consequence would be that they could catch the criminals of the social media, and try to stop the social media crime like cyber bullying, hacking, and fraud. Social media surveillance can also affect your privacy because you usually post your pictures or some information on social media by the help of social media surveillance companies can leak your data to get information about you. But if this information is in the right hand till then it is ok but if this information gets a leak and get into the wrong hands then it could have many severe consequences in which the most common consequence is cyber bullying and these crimes have their own severe consequences like making a person mentally ill and if it continues so on then it can also make the person to commit suicide or something even more dangerous than no one can think. According to research that “ Children and young people under 25 who are victims of cyberbullying are more than twice as likely to self-harm and enact suicidal behavior, according to a new study.

Course of action

As discussed above, with the help of social media surveillance the government can help us in the reduction of cyber bullying. But it is not only the government’s responsibility to help us out but it is also our responsibility to help ourselves. We can help ourselves by not posting any of your personal or private data or information on social media as these criminals are always there to take advantage of it. Government should only allow trusted and reliable people to survey the accounts of people. Businesses man’s allowances to survey the account should be restricted to the extent that they cannot be able to see all of their information that the users do won’t make the others see. There should and are a high amount of fines on the people who are caught on the basis of cyber bullying and should also be giving a big punishment. The centerpiece of this legislation is the establishment of a Children’s e-Safety Commissioner who will have power to require large social networking sites to take down cyberbullying material or incur significant fines of up to $17,000 a day. Make more organizations that can easily survey and lessen the social media crime rate. Complaints to police about alleged crimes linked to the use of Facebook and Twitter have increased by 780% in four years, resulting in about 650 people being charged last year. But if the government gives their best and the people would support them then these numbers could end up at zero and social media surveillance would help them for sure.

Harassment is the demonstration of sending hostile, discourteous, and offending messages and being abusive. Terrible or embarrassing remarks on posts, photographs, and in visit rooms also fall within the ambit of harassment. It implies being expressly hostile to gaming destinations. As for adults, the “Pew Research Center reported in 2014 that 40 percent of adult Internet users said they had personally experienced online harassment while 73 percent witnessed it occurring to others”. The Cyber bullying Research Center says” that about 25 percent of middle and high school students have reported being cyber bullied at some point in their lives, with about 9 percent saying they have been cyber bullied within the 30 days” preceding the survey.

The second type is online defamation. It is an act where somebody may send data about someone else that is harming and false or share photographs of somebody for the reason to deride and spread counterfeit bits of gossip and tattle. This can be on any website on the web or on applications. We even find out about individuals adjusting photographs of others and posting these online for simply mischief and menace. For example, showbiz personalities are trolled for their personal issues, health, and appearance and deliberately presented in such a wrong way which affects their image. It was reported that a Star Wars fanatic made a home movie that he wanted to keep private since he made it for fun but eventually, some boys got their hands on it and soon the video went viral. The boy was embarrassed as his private video was being shown all over the world. The boy got so disturbed that he had to change his school and he had taken under the care of psychiatrists.

The third type is Cyberstalking, which is the point at which somebody will hack into somebody’s email or social networking account and utilize the individual’s online character to send or post awful or humiliating material to/about others. The creation of fake profiles on informal organization destinations, applications, and online is a normal occurrence and it very well may be extremely hard to get them to shut down. Cyber stalking is far increasingly dangerous as it includes evil goals, ranging from false allegations and criticism to sexual harassment and in any event, urging others to hassle the person in question. Most of the time, physical and digital stalking interconnect, making it significantly all the more dangerous.

Moreover, trolling is the point at which a bully will search out to deliberately agitate others by posting remarks on the web just in order to embarrass someone. Trolling may not generally be a type of cyber bullying; however, it very well may be utilized as a device to cyber bully when done with pernicious and unsafe aims. These harassers will in general be progressively disengaged from their unfortunate casualties, and don’t have an individual relationship. Due to online trolling, thousands of people mostly teenagers attempt suicide. For example, a 16-year old girl committed suicide when people trolled her online and imposed questions like, “Can you kill yourself already?” which led her to depression and eventually took her own life.

Exclusion is the fifth type of cyber bullying. It is the demonstration of forgetting about somebody intentionally. Exclusion exists with in-person bullying situations, but on the other hand, is utilized online to target and menace an injured individual. For instance, a person may not be invited to gatherings and deliberately excluded while they see different companions being incorporated, or left out of message strings or discussions that include common companions. Social rejection happens in a roundabout way sending a hurtful message to the objective kid that they are excluded in social exercises without the requirement for verbal belittling. As it is notable, youngsters and adolescents are formatively focused on being perceived in a positive light by their companions; the way toward assigning who is an individual from the friend gathering and who is excluded can be devastating to the objective kid.

Lastly, Impersonation or ‘imping’ as a strategy in cyber bullying can just happen with the ‘veil of anonymity offered by Information and Communications Technology. Cyber bullies mimic the objective youngster and make disagreeable online remarks on long-range informal communication locales, discussions, message sheets, and in talk rooms. Utilizing pantomime, cyber bullies likewise set up sites that incorporate poisonous data prompting the objective kid to be alienated or misled in progressively great harassing ways. Frequently, the objective kid is ignorant of these occasions until the strategy has been structured and actualized. For example, they may post provocative messages in a detest gathering’s talk room or on their internet-based life webpage, welcoming an assault against the person in question, frequently giving the name, address, and phone number of the unfortunate casualty to make the hate group’s activity easier.

Quoting a real story published by BBC News, a mother said “he was a happy lad, not depressed and the last type of person you would think would take their life”. She said that they were a very close family and she just wished he had come to me and said something. These were the expressions of the mother of 17-year-old Daniel Perry, who ended his very own life after he was clearly extorted in the wake of becoming friends with somebody he thought was a young lady of his age on the web. In reality, he was in contact with an extortion gang. The family was told on 15 July to deposit thousands of pounds into an account or images or videos of their son would be shared with his family and friends or the public. Hours later, he was dead. His mother said in an interview to the Dunfermline press that her son was too terrified to talk to someone about this issue. [image: ]

To help someone who is going through cyber bullying, we have to look out for the signs. The effects that can result from digital tormenting incorporates low self-esteem, withdrawal from family and investing a great deal of energy alone, reluctance to let guardians or other relatives anyplace close to their mobiles, PCs, etc., finding reasons to avoid school or work including school refusal, friends vanishing or being prohibited from social events, losing weight or changing appearance to attempt to fit in, fresh checks on the skin that could show self-damage and dress diversely, for example, wearing long-sleeved garments in the mid-year to conceal any imprints and an adjustment in character for example outrage, sorrow, crying, and indifference to things around them.

Cyber bullying is a great matter which is not addressed properly to spread awareness. One should know how is cyber bullying done and what are its effects as well as they should consider how to eradicate it from their society. For example, in an event when you see somebody being irritated or harassed on the web, unquestionably don’t heap on, yet consider ways that you can be strong to that individual. Monica Lewinsky, who was broadly annoyed after her much-announced association with President Bill Clinton, just joined forces with Vodaphone on another #Be Strong Emoji console application for iOS that gives clients a chance to express compassion to others through steady little illustrations, called emoticons, that express help for those being tormented or badgering. It is very important to choose kindness and stop bullying so it is up to you if you want to make a difference or not?

Social media bullying is a common and growing phenomenon. The actual incidence of cyberbullying is unknown as many cyberbullying victims do not appear for help. Cyberbullying is an act that threatens, embarrasses, or intimidates a person

Cyberbullying is a very common and growing phenomenon. The actual incidence of cyberbullying is unknown as many cyberbullying victims do not appear for help. Cyberbullying is an act that threatens, embarrasses, or intimidates a person through electronic means such as text messages, chatting, email, social website, cell phone, Internet games.

Cyberbullying is more dangerous than bullying, cyberbullying has its own characteristics. Cyberbullying is difficult to identify because it can conceal their true identity. Cyberbullying is not like another bullying as it happens in a borderless cyber world. This makes it difficult for victims to protect themselves. Cyberbullying is easier to deal with than other types of bullying because of the limited number of individuals involved in the cyber world. Cyberbullying can last forever, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and 365 days a year. Bullying is rampant. This situation causes the community to become more and more upset. Describe the causes and steps that have been triggered.

According to the study, bullying cases are increasing every year among students and the problem is getting worse. ‘If it wasn’t for the wind cooking the trees would shake’. Therefore, every problem that has to do with it has its reasons. There are several causes that have been identified as contributors to this bullying case.

Among them is the lack of appreciation of religious values ​​available to students who are willing to engage in bullying cases. They are willing to do so only to gain the attention of others and to show their strength to others. In short, they are losing the value of humanity in themselves.

In addition, parents who are less likely to give love and care to their children are among the reasons for this bullying. Parents who are always busy making money and being materialistic have given up on their children.

In addition, students who are at least one year old and bloody are easily influenced by the actions of their peers. If his or her friends are bullying, the student will also follow the behavior of his or her friends to be accepted by their group members. Loose supervision in schools is also the reason for giving students the opportunity to practice bullying against other students.

The saying goes there is no disease without cure’.There are a number of drastic steps that can be taken to curb and combat this crisis. Among them are the government like the Ministry of Education and the school should emphasize the issue of bullying in school education through specific subjects such as Moral Education, Islamic Education, Civic Education, and so on. As such, students will be aware that bullying is a crime and students will also be exposed to various information about the adverse effects of bullying and ways to prevent it from being involved in bullying cases.

In addition, lectures or campaigns such as anti-bullying campaigns can also be held on a regular basis in each school from time to time to help students stay away from bullying symptoms. Activities such as quizzes on bullying cases can also be implemented as an initiative in addressing these bullying cases.

However, the school must also ensure that surveillance at every corner of the school such as the back of the school building and quiet school corridor is tightened so as not to provide opportunities for those who wish to bully their victims. Schools can also encourage students to actively participate in the Crime Prevention Club at the school. This is because students will gain more knowledge on ways to prevent bullying cases if they become predators in the case and students can also share the information obtained with their peers so that all students know about it.

Another step is that students should also be good at choosing friends because students will also be more likely to be influenced by their peers. For example, if a friend is interested in reading a book, then the student will also be influenced and read together. The same is true if the student’s friend is involved in bullying at school. In addition, students should work with the school in order to contain these symptoms. Students who are exposed to bullying or who are victims of bullying should be encouraged to report to the school immediately so that the problem can be resolved as soon as possible for the sake of the school’s well-being.

Meanwhile, schools that have received complaints from students should also work hard to resolve the issue rather than cover up the case at will. If this case is still not being discussed, the problem of bullying will only get worse and worse. The school may meet with the student suspected of being involved in bullying cases as well as his or her parents to discuss the problem the student is facing and to find a way out. The school should impose the appropriate punishment on the student so that he will not repeat the act and also serve as an example to the other students.

Internet bullying, more commonly referred to as cyberbullying represents the use of the internet or mobile device to intimidate, harass, or inflict harm to others. Although bullying has been common in society, it has in recent times moved from learning institutions to social platforms such as Twitter, Facebook, emails as well as mobile text messages. Cyberbullying has harmful consequences on the victims. Some of these consequences range from psychological suffering alongside suicidal attempts and ideations. It is important to note that cyberbullying presents unique features and challenges for individuals that would want to pursue legal action. However, several states have recently responded to the increase in cyberbullying cases and established laws around cyberbullying or electronic harassment.

Facts about Cyberbullying

Despite the absence of audible insults or physical contact, cyberbullying can as traumatizing as other forms of traditional bullying. A study by Brochado, Soares & Fraga (2017) reports that approximately 75% of cyberbullying occurs through insults from the cyber-bully while the other form of bullying involves exclusion from the online community. Victims of cyberbullying report that the bullying involves unlawful or illegal access of personal information such as fraudulent use of email addresses, online trespass, and unlawful access to personal accounts.

There were no specific cyberbullying laws until the mid-2000s. However, this does not imply that legislators have not been following keenly the increasing trend of cyberbullying incidents which at times result in tragic incidents of school shootings and suicide. Despite the evidence that is often presented in courts about the effects of cyberbullying, legislators at both the federal and state have not found effective ways of addressing cyberbullying. The main challenge behind cyberbullying is the fact that the United States has for a long time been molded by the right of the public to express their opinions freely. Controlling cyberbullying is therefore perceived as an infringement of the 1st amendment. United States’ 1st Amendment prohibits the government from making laws that control the establishment of a religion, control freedom of speech, freedom of the press as well as the right to petition the government and other public bodies for a redress of grievances (Post, 2017). Therefore, when cyberbullying cases are presented to courts, the plaintiff’s side bases their argument on the court’s attempt to limit the rights that are provided in the 1st Amendment. This then throws judges into prolonged court sessions trying to define what cyberbullying is and identifying the proper sanctions for individuals that propagate cyberbullying acts. It is for this reason that most cases that involved freedom of speech such as cyberbullying found their way up to the U.S Supreme Court. The other issue about cyberbullying is that although laws are in place to guide the course of action in cases involving cyberbullying, the enforcement part of these laws is left in the hands of school administrations. More importantly, cyberbullying cases are most of the time treated as civil cases and not criminal in nature as they should be.

Cyberbullying Laws

The recent increase in cyberbullying cases has led to the establishment of several laws by states across the United States. Prosecutors often refer to existing laws to prosecute persons that are suspected to have engaged in cyberbullying acts. More importantly, criminal harassment statutes have been used as a basis for delivering rulings in severe cases especially in instances that result in suicide or other tragic incidents. States across the U.S have also established cyber harassment statutes which provide guidelines for charging internet bullies in certain states (Hinduja, n.d). The guidelines are driven towards establishing policies against bullying both in school and off-school environments.

The other law that captures cyberbullying and provides directions on what should be done is the Safe Place to Learn Act which was enacted in California (California Legislative Information, n.d). This act describes internet bullying as harassment especially in learning institutions but also goes further and includes communication by electronic act as another avenue for propagating bullying. Besides citing that students have the right to attend schools that are safe and peaceful, the Act also describes the use of electronic media to intimidate others as a misdemeanor that is punishable either by a fine of up to $1, 000 or a jail term of one year (California Legislative Information, n.d).

The other law that has offered insight into internet bullying is the Jeffrey Johnston Stand Up for All Students Act which was adopted by the state of Florida. This law forbids bullying of K-12 students. It specifically addresses the concern of internet bullying which it describes as harassment or intimidation done through technology or electronic communication). The law does not have any criminal sanctions on individuals that have been charged for bullying but dictate that school administrations should draft policies on cyber bullying and amiably report the instances.

Lastly, Missouri is another state that has actively been involved in managing cases of internet bullying. According to the Missouri Statute, bullying represents any form of intimidation or harassment that is done either through sound, image, message, or electronic devices (FindLaw, n.d). In Missouri, individuals who are found guilty of bullying others through social media through violent threats are charged with harassment which is categorized as a class A misdemeanor. However, the crime becomes a class D felony if the defendant is 21 years old or older and the victim is 17 years old or younger.

Penalties for Internet Bullying

The penalties differ depending on the state where the internet bullying was committed. Often cyberbullying laws may result in civil penalties such as suspension or expulsion by school administration or serving a jail term for certain misdemeanors or felonies. The main difference of cyberbullying laws involves criminal vs. administrative sanctions for violations. A good example is Florida where the law does not have criminal charges against internet bullying but directs school boards to come up with administrative penalties such as expulsion or suspension against individuals that have been convicted with internet bullying. This is different in other states such as Missouri where offenders can be charged for violent threats that are expressed through social media platforms and other electronic devices.

Conclusion

Internet bullying is a subject that is rapidly evolving in law. The impact of internet bullying has far-reaching ramifications such as causing mental distress, loss of self-esteem, developing suicidal ideations, and suicidal attempts. Cases dealing with cyberbullying have been difficult to handle as prosecutors always argue that it is against the 1st Amendment that offers citizens the right to free speech. However, in recent times different states such as Florida, Missouri, and California have stood against cyberbullying acts by establishing laws that offer the course of action against cyberbullying.

References:

1. Brochado, S., Soares, S., & Fraga, S. (2017). A scoping review on studies of cyberbullying prevalence among adolescents. Trauma, Violence, & Abuse, 18(5), 523-531;
2. California Legislative Information (n.d). School safety: Safe Place to Learn Act. Retrieved from; https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=201520160AB2845[Accessed 8/12/2019];
3. FindLaw (n.d). Missouri Revised Statutes Title XI. Education and Libraries § 160.775. Antibullying policy required–definition–requirements—cyberbullying. Retrieved from; https://codes.findlaw.com/mo/title-xi-education-and-libraries/mo-rev-st-160-775.html [Accessed 8/12/2019];
4. Florida department of education (fdoe) (n.d). Bullying Prevention. Retrieved from; http://www.fldoe.org/safe-schools/bullying-prevention.stml[Accessed 8/12/2019];
5. Hinduja. S (n.d). State Bullying Laws. Retrieved from https://cyberbullying.org/Bullying-and-Cyberbullying-Laws.pdf [Accessed 8/12/2019];
6. Post, R. (2017). The Classic First Amendment Tradition Under Stress: Freedom of Speech and the University. Yale Law School, Public Law Research Paper, (619).