Are You Safe On Line?
Cyberbullying and Cyberthreats Online
April 30, 2008
Are We Safe on the Internet?
This is a great question. Answer: yes and no.
We know that we benefit from the Net--we can communicate quickly, meet new people from anywhere in the world, and have access to any type of information. We can access grades, we can download music, and with can upload videos. However, as with any form of communication, it is important to remember that there are also dangers.
In the year 2003-04 school year, i-Safe, an Internet safety education site, surveyed students from across the country on a new topic often referred to as cyberbullying. I-safe came up with the following statistics:
* 42% of kids have been bullied while online. One in four have had it happen more than once.
* 35% of kids have been threatened online. Nearly one in five have had it happen more than once.
* 21% of kids have received mean or threatening e-mail or other messages.
* 58% of kids admit someone has said mean or hurtful things to them online. More than four out of 10 have had it happen more than once.
* 53% of kids admit having said something mean or hurtful to another person online.
* 58% have not told their parents or an adult about something mean or hurtful that happened to them while online.
Cyberbullying is sending or posting harmful or cruel text or images using the Internet or other digital devices such as cell phones, MP3 players, etc. It can happen through the use of e-mail, instant messaging, blogs, web logs, personal web sites, My Space, Face Book and other online personal polling sites. Cyberthreats are any online material that threatens or raises concerns about violence against others, suicide, or other self-harm. There are three kinds of cyberthreats: direct, indirect and distress.
Cyberbulling, like any other form of bullying, is about human relationships, power and control. Those who bully others are trying to establish power and control over others that they perceive to be "weaker" than themselves. Those who bully want to make victims feel that there is something wrong with them. If we are being cyberbullied, then it is important for us to know that there is NOTHING wrong with us; rather it is the bullies who have the real problem.
Cyberbulling and cyberthreats include the following:
* Sending cruel, vicious, and sometimes threatening messages to others;
* Creating web sites that have stories, cartoons, pictures and jokes ridiculing others;
* Posting pictures of people online without their permission;
* Asking people to rate people online with questions such as, "Who is the biggest ____ (add a derogatory term)?
* Breaking into an e-mail account and sending vicious or embarrassing material to others;
* Engaging someone in IM (Instant Messaging), tricking that person into revealing sensitive personal information and then forwarding that information to others;
* Taking a picture of a person in a locker room or other places using a digital phone camera and sending that picture to others.
To keep yourself safe on the Internet, follow these guidelines. But remember: the Internet is public...there is no security or safety online. If someone is very good at hacking, they have the ability to access anything in cyberspace.
1. Password-protect your blog. Make sure that nobody knows your password other than your parents.
2. Do not include very personal and detailed information (places you hang out, malls, school sweatshirts, etc.) in your blog.
3. Do not complete a profile or include name, address, phone number, school, mascot, zip code, etc. This is exactly the kind of information a predator is looking for, so don't include it.
4. Do not release personal information about anyone else you know.
5. Read everything you put online and make sure there is nothing that can let a predator know who you are or where you live.
6. Do not include photos of yourself or others in your blog.
7. Do not leave your blog page open and your computer unattended. Someone could step in and write something as you.
8. Do not spread gossip or slander or send threats about your classmates, parents, teachers, principals, bosses, or other people in leadership positions.
9. Don't believe everything we read on the Internet; just because someone tells us that they are so and so from New Orleans, doesn't mean they really are...
10. Be careful of any person you meet online....strangers can be sexual predators and sexual predators will befriends us, make us feel they understand us, comfort us....
11. Never meet a stranger you have met online unless you take your parents or guardians with you.
What should I do if I am bullied online?
1. Do not keep this to yourself. Tell a parent, teacher, principal or coach that you trust.
2. Inform you Internet, IM or mobile phone service provider...they don't want bullies using their services either.
3. Do NOT reply to messages from cyberbullies or from strangers you do not know and never respond to any form of message when you are angry.
4. Do not erase or delete messages from cyberbullies. Save it or take a screen shot of the information in case you need it for evidence.
5. If you are threatened or harassed online, contact the sheriff's office, local police department or the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children's Cyber Tip line: 1-800-843-5678 or their web site @
For more information on being safe on the Internet, and tips and suggestions as to how your children can be safe on the Internet, click on the links below:
http://www.illinoisattorneygeneral.gov/children/safetytips.html
https://www.isp.state.il.us/icomplaint/
You can also watch a Power Point presentation created by Zach O. in his Information & Software Systems II class. Click on the link below to access the Power Point. You need Power Point on your computer in order to view. Depending on the speed of your Internet, it may take some time to download the Power Point.
