Cyberbullying continues to be a cause for concern both in school and out of it and Dublin PD is asking parents for help in preventing it.
According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 15 percent of students within the United States report being cyberbullied in 2022.
Cyberbullying can include harassing, threatening, demeaning or embarrassing someone else using an online platform.
For those kids ages 9-10, cyberbullying is most commonly done via gaming sites and for teens 13-16, it is more common to be bullied via social media platforms.
“Bullying has been around forever, but online it doesn’t stop when a child leaves school,” Dublin PD Detective Nancy Wilson said. “It has become rampant.”
Wilson said the police department has had a couple of very serious cases this year, some that they are in the process of pursuing charges on.
Not only does cyberbullying carry a punishment in school, whether the act is done during school or not, but making a threat online to make someone feel scared is a Third Degree felony.
“A terroristic threat is any threat that causes alarm,” she said.
Dublin ISD uses a link on their website to allow students to report bullying and iwatchTexas, a community reporting system that allows suspicious activity to be reported.
“Unfortunately we have already had to deal with issues of cyberbullying this year,” Superintendent Melissa Summers said. “Our counselors implement guidance lessons pertaining to character education and anti-bullying throughout the district.”
Wilson sees one solution to aid in cyberbullying: parents need to become more aware and involved in their kids’ lives, especially when it comes to devices, technology and social media.
“If you aren’t monitoring what they are doing on apps, you’ve failed as a parent,” she said.
One tool that is useful for parents is Bark, a tool that can put onto phones for parental control, including content monitoring, screen time management, and website blocking as well as online safety for kids.
Bark monitors texts, email, YouTube, and 30+ apps and social media platforms for signs of issues like cyberbullying, sexual content, online predators, depression, suicidal ideation, threats of violence and more.
Wilson said conversations need to take place between kids and their parents about what is appropriate to share, how to conduct themselves online and to encourage them to think about what they are posting before they do it.
“Parents need to work on teaching their kids about technology and social media,” she said.
One hard and fast rule that Wilson advises for parents is for them to have access to the phone at all times, including knowing every single password, and to require their children to be friends with them on social media so they can see who kids are interacting with.
“Look at what apps are on their phones and who they are talking to,” she advised. “It’s an easy way to prevent bad things from happening with pedophiles.”
Location services, Wilson said, can be dangerous since it makes a child’s location known on certain social media platforms.
Warning signs a child is being cyberbullied or is cyberbullying others Many of the warning signs that cyberbullying is occurring happen around a child’s use of their device. Some of the warning signs that a child may be involved in cyberbullying are: Noticeable increases or decreases in device use, including texting.
A child exhibits emotional responses (laughter, anger, upset) to what is happening on their device.
A child hides their screen or device when others are near, and avoids discussion about what they are doing on their device.
Social media accounts are shut down or new ones appear.
A child starts to avoid social situations, even those that were enjoyed in the past.
A child becomes withdrawn or depressed, or loses interest in people and activities.
What to do when Cyberbullying happens Notice – Recognize if there has been a change in mood or behavior and explore what the cause might be. Try to determine if these changes happen around a child’s use of their digital devices.
Talk – Ask questions to learn what is happening, how it started, and who is involved.
Document – Keep a record of what is happening and where. Take screenshots of harmful posts or content if possible.
Report – Most social media platforms and schools have clear policies and reporting processes.
(Tips courtesy of stopbullying.gov)