By: Charlotte Smith
Cyber bullying has become an increasing concern in Bladen County. The Bladen County Baptist Association along with Lt. Mark McMichael, with Elizabethtown Police Department, organized a Cyber Bullying Seminar to help educate community members about this rising issue.
Leading the seminar, Lt. Mark McMichael, a Certified Criminal Investigator and Certified Teacher, started with, “What are your children doing online? Do you know what your children are doing online?” Cyber Bullying is bullying with technology.
The internet is not just on the computers now. Mobile phones, tablets, televisions, iPods, gaming systems and now even vehicles have online accessibility. Our youth are now saturated with the online environment. Parents need to know what to look for in this new age to help protect their children. Children need to be aware the potential consequences of Cyber Bullying, and sharing more than they should on the internet.
Cyber bullying is different from the traditional bullying, McMichael explained, “It spreads faster, it can reach a wider audience, and it follows the victim home.” Examples of cyber bullying are sending mean text messages, sexting, photo shopping photographs, posting videos of fights, identity theft, spreading rumors, making threats or creating fake accounts online to cause someone harm.
McMichael gave these six tips to help protect your child or yourself when you are online:
- Use caution when meeting online friends
- Keep personal information private
- Use privacy settings
- Use strong passwords, and change them often
- Don’t use your actual photo as your profile picture
- Think before you post
If your child was once involved with online activities and no longer shows any interest in using the internet or acts nervous when they receive an email or text message, they may be a victim of cyber bullying. If you or someone you know is a victim of cyber bullying save screen shots of the evidence, block the cyber bullies, set up new accounts, consult your cellphone provider, install filtering software, report it.
Don’t be a by-stander. A cyber bully may exhibit the following behaviors: switching screens or minimizing screens when someone walks up, using the computer at all hours, laughing excessively while online and may have multiple accounts.
To help prevent your child from getting caught up in cyber bullying McMichael made the following suggestions:
- Establish expectations of your child’s online behavior.
- Set consequences and follow through with them if the rules you set are broken.
- Keep record of your child’s online usernames.
- Review your child’s online comments.
- Discuss your child’s friends posts.
Bladen County Schools have strict rules about bullying. North Carolina has legislation to assist in conviction of cyber bullies. Parents are now responsible for educating themselves and their children of online dangers.
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