The document discusses various issues related to bullying, internet safety, and cyberbullying. It notes that bullying negatively impacts the learning environment and that bullies rely on intimidation and fear. Studies show that many students who bully go on to have criminal convictions. The document also discusses the prevalence of cyberbullying, how anonymity online enables new forms of bullying, and the tragic consequences this can lead to in some cases. It provides resources for parents and schools to help address these issues.
3. Subtle and Not-So-Subtle
Ways to Bully
Subtle Intimidation or Overt
Discrimination = loss or destruction of
self-esteem
Bullies rely on fear
Bullies exert power
4. Study of Children Who Bully:
-
60% of boys who bullied in middle
school had at least one conviction by
age 24.
40% had three or more (Olweus)
5. Impact on the Victim
Everyday ~160,000 students stay home from school
due to the fear of being bullied (Vail, 1999)
15% - 25% of U.S. students are bullied with some
frequency (Nansel et al, 2001)
6. Kids & Teens Use the Internet Daily
Research, Read, Write
Blog, Make Sites, Create Social Networks
Search for Colleges & Jobs
Share Photos & Videos
Chat / Instant Message (IM)
Play Games
Download Music, Movies
7. Internet Safety 101
Inappropriate content:
Pornography
Hateful, racist, and violent material
Details of illegal activity
Obtaining drugs, alcohol
How to make drugs, explosives
Gambling websites
8. The Internet is Everywhere
The Internet is accessible from almost any
location and portable devices
Kids need your help navigating the Internet
to avoid its risks
9. Your Child’s Online Life
33% of 13 to 17-year-olds reported that their parents
or guardians know “very little” or “nothing” about
what they do on the Internet. (Source: NCMEC & Cox
Communications.)
Communicate with your kids about online safety
Educate yourself about the Internet and related
technologies
10. What’s Your IM IQ?
MOS Mom Over Shoulder
CD9 Code 9: Parents Nearby
A/S/L? Age, sex, location?
GNOC! Get Naked On Camera!
MIRL Meet in real life
11. You Can’t Take It Back!
Online profiles and blogs can also be viewed by:
Parents, guardians, and relatives
Teachers and principals
Colleges and universities
Employers
ONLINE PREDATORS
If it’s on the Internet, IT’S NOT PRIVATE.
12. You Can’t Take It Back!
Photos and videos should never be posted online if
they show:
Backgrounds that reveal identifying information
Sexually provocative poses
Too much skin
13. WHAT IS
CYBER-BULLYING?
- When a child is tormented, harassed, embarrassed,
threatened, or humiliated repeatedly by another child
or group of children
- Occurs online or through another electronic device
- Research indicates that at least half of middle and
high school students have been bullied online at least
once!
14. CYBER-BULLY vs.
PLAYGROUND BULLY
ANONYMOUS – Cyber-bullies can hide their
identities online
NO SUPERVISION online – on the playground, adults
are usually watching!
CONTINOUS VICTIMIZATION
Most kids have cell phones or Internet access
constantly
15. COMMON PLACES…
Instant Messaging
Email
Social Networking
Facebook, Myspace, MyYearbook, Stickam, YouTube
Cell Phones
Text Messages
Apps - iPhone’s “Ugly Meter”
16. Cyber-Bullying Matters
19% of teens report being harassed or bullied online
The incidence is higher among kids 16- and 17- year-
olds at 23%
85% of incidents occur when youth are at home
17. • Information can be inadvertently revealed
in pictures
• Sexually provocative pictures can be used
for exploitation
18. How to Create
Safer Social Networking
Make your own profile and add your
children as friends
Learn the site’s safety features
Have children use privacy settings
Teach kids to add only friends they know in real life
Examine their list of friends and browse their
friends’ pages
19. Facebook Security
Facebook allows it’s users to download a copy of their
profile to a zip file that Facebook stores.
This information can be provided to Law Enforcement in
the event an incident occurs involving a Facebook
Profile.
Parents with access to their child's profile can download
this information and provide a copy to LEA for their
investigation.
This includes photos, videos, posts, messages, friends
lists, and other content shared with others.
20. Download Profile
Access “Account” from drop down menu in upper
right corner
Choose “Account Setting”
At bottom of menu choose “Download Your
Information, Learn More”
Choose “Download”
21.
22. What is “sexting”?
The sending or
receiving of
sexually-
suggestive or
explicit text or
pictures via one’s
cell phone, web
cam or other
electronic means.
23. How widespread is this
problem?
One in five teens (13-19 years) of age have sent/posted nude or
semi-nude pictures or videos of themselves
21% of teen girls and 39% of teen boys sent these photos in
hopes of dating or 'hooking up' with the person receiving the
photos
51% of girls say they have felt pressure from a guy to send
nude photos
33% of boys admit to having looked at nude or semi nude
images - originally meant for someone else
The National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy
24. Real life imitates life online
What teens are doing electronically seems to have
an effect on what they do in real life: 22% admit that
technology makes them personally more forward
and aggressive.
38% say exchanging sexy content makes dating or
hooking up with others more likely.
29% believe those exchanging sexy content are
“expected” to date or hook up.
25.
26. Tragic Consequences
After his former girlfriend taunted him, Phillip Alpert
remembered the nude photos she e-mailed to him
while they were dating.
He took revenge with an electronic blast — e-mailing
the photos of the 16-year-old girl to more than 70
people, including her parents, grandparents and
teachers.
27. Teen committed suicide over
‘sexting’
Jesse Logan was taunted about photo
she sent to boyfriend
February 15, 1990 - July 3, 2008
28. Cell Porn Scandal Hits Pa. High School
ALLENTOWN, PA. January 24, 2008 (AP)
“Police faced a difficult
if not impossible task
Thursday as they tried
to stop the spread of
pornographic video
and photos of two high
school girls, images
that were transmitted
by cell phone to dozens
of the girls' classmates
and then to the wider
world.”
29. Discussion Points
Scenario 1
Boyfriend breaks up with the girl then sends the
image to 20 of his friends who then send it to their
friends.
Charge Don’t charge
30. Discussion Points
Scenario 2
The original girl commits suicide as the result of her
picture being shared all over the Internet.
Charge Don’t charge
31. What Can Parents & Schools Do?
Set rules for Internet use:
What sites can your child visit?
Whom can they talk to online?
How much time can they spend online?
Keep the computer in a common room (not in
secluded areas like a bedroom or basement)
32. What You Can Do
Consider safeguarding options:
Filtering applications restrict access to
inappropriate material
Monitoring software records websites
visited, chat conversations, and other
content
33. What You Can Do
Tell your child not to respond to harassing
messages
Save the evidence
Set up a new account for your child and lock them
out of the old one
If you believe your child is in immediate danger,
contact your local law-enforcement agency.
34. What You Can Do
Communicate:
Encourage your child to confide in you about
anything that makes them feel scared,
uncomfortable, or confused while online
Prepare yourself beforehand for what they may tell
you
35. What We Do
Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Forces
Coordination with the National Center for Missing &
Exploited Children (NCMEC)
Coordination with local, state, and federal law
enforcement agencies
36. Megan Meier
The New York Times
August 3, 2008
“Megan Meier, 13, began receiving
nasty messages from a boy after a
few weeks of an online flirtation
with him, via her MySpace
account, ending with one that
suggested “the world would be a
better place” without her. Megan,
believing she had been rejected by
"Josh," completed suicide in her
home.”
37. Megan Meier
- 13 years old
- The “Unattractive Girl”
- Catholic School, MO
- Completed Suicide on:
October 17, 2006
- A mother was Charged & Convicted
(conviction was later overturned)
38. Megan Meier
- The “Bullies” used:
- MySpace
(created a “hoax” account and used
it to post “mean” comments)
39. Phoebe Prince
- 15 years old
- The “New Girl”
- South Hadley High School, Mass.
- Completed Suicide on:
January 14, 2010
- 5 Students Charged
40. Phoebe Prince
- The “Bullies” used:
- Facebook
- Twitter
- Craigs List
- Formspring
42. RESOURCES
Cyber-bullying Research Center –
www.cyberbullying.us
National Center for Bullying Prevention -
www.pacer.org/bullying/index.asp
STOP Cyberbullying –
www.stopcyberbullying.org/
Netsmartz – www.netsmartz.org
National Center for Missing & Exploited Children -
www.cybertipline.com
Notas do Editor
Today’s kids and teens have grown up using the Internet. It’s a part of their culture. It’s an amazing tool with legitimate uses. But the Internet also presents several challenges which require guidance from adults.
“ A lot of focus is paid to child predators. However, it’s important to remember that the Internet can introduce kids and teens to inappropriate material.”
“ Kids can go online almost anywhere—not just the computer at home, but at a friend’s house, a library, or school. They can even use their cell phones. Allowing kids to go online without supervision or ground rules is like allowing them to explore a major metropolitan area by themselves. You can’t watch your kids every minute, but you can use strategies to help kids navigate this online world.”
In 2006, the NCMEC and Cox Communications surveyed over 1,000 teens about online safety and their online habits. (Read stat) The most important points that I want you to take away from this evening are to COMMUNICATE with your kids, and EDUCATE yourself. Communication suggestions (Open/ ongoing/ dangers will change as children mature) Education suggestions (Kids are more adept than we are when it comes to understanding how these technologies work. Ask them to teach you.)
“ Instant messaging is extremely popular with kids and teens because it saves time AND it keeps parents from understanding what’s being said. It’s crucial that you famaliarize yourself with commonly used acronymns.
“ Teach your kids to use careful judgment before posting anything online. A college admissions office may decline an applicant due to a photo from a party with underage drinking. Or an online predator could use the personal information to exploit a child’s insecurities.”
Likewise, talk to your kids about webcams. Unless grandma is living in another state--and you are supervising a web camera use--there is no reason for a child to have a web cam. Keep in mind that a lot of laptops and cell phones have cameras built in. Photos can be easily copied and altered to humiliate someone.
“ Cyberbullies use the Internet to say and do terrible things because there is no face-to-face contact, and they don’t see the immediate consequences to their cruel actions. Bullying is not limited to the school yard--it can be a 24/7 problem and a source of tremendous stress for those being bullied”
Above is an example of what I was referring to in terms of details which can reveal a location. The name of the team, combined with the personal information listed in their profile, makes their location easy to trace. 64% of teens post photos or videos of themselves, while 58% post information about where they live. 1 1 Cox Communications Inc., National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, and John Walsh. Teen Internet Safety Survey, Wave II . Atlanta, GA: Cox Communications Inc., 2007.
"Creating your own profile take about 10 minutes, tops. Once you and your child are online “friends”, you will be able to review your child’s profile at any time.” Keep in mind, that some kids have more than 1 profile. In fact, kids may have a “safe” profile that they share with their parents, and a “real” profile that they use to interact with the rest of the world.
This incident occurred near Allentown, PA , just this past year (explain story). It’s a good example of why we as parents and educators need to think beyond the computer in terms of online safety. We need to consider cell phones, web cams and even video games.
It’s important to think about your child’s Internet use like you would any other area where rules and limits are appropriate. A good analogy would be driving the family car.
Safeguarding options can be helpful, but they do not replace good communication and established rules for Internet use. If you choose to use one of these methods, keep in mind that your child may be able to disable these safeguards.
The ICACs work closely with the National Center on CyberTip reports, as well as with other state, local, federal, and even international law enforcement agencies. Pennsylvania’s ICAC is located in Delaware County and is comprised of over 50(?) affiliates state-wide. Last year, the PA ICAC received over 1,000 (?) CyberTip reports. We do not encourage cyber vigilantes
How many of you are familiar with this story? (Recap). While the behavior of the parent is unusual, other children have also responded to severe cyberbullying by committing suicide.