Cyberbullying Protecting children in the COVID-19 era

As the time we spend ahead of increases during the pandemic, respectively increases the risk of cyberbullying.

Experts at international cyber security company ESET explain what cyberbullying is and what you can do to protect yourself you.

Almost a year has passed since the World Health Organization () κήρυξε επίσημα τον πλανήτη σε κατάσταση πανδημίας λόγω του -19. Οι άνθρωποι κάνουμε ότι καλύτερο μπορούμε για να συμμορφωθούμε με τις οδηγίες των Αρχών και τους κανόνες κοινωνικής αποστασιοποίησης, με την ελπίδα ότι ο κόσμος μας θα επιστρέψει σε κάποια ομαλότητα το συντομότερο δυνατό.

Entire families are now confined to the home, with most of their daily activities taking place through the screens of electronic devices. While it is difficult for everyone, one could say that the new reality is even more difficult for children, as they lose an essential part of their developmental process.

From the moment they wake up until they fall asleep, children spend their day in the digital world - watching their lessons online, interacting with their friends on the internet, "digesting" large amounts of content online and playing online games.

However, experts warn that spending so much time online is not only unhealthy but also dangerous, as it can expose them to various dangers, most notably cyberbullying.

How does cyberbullying manifest itself?

It is natural that after the pandemic and the rules of social distancing, the risk of cyberbullying has increased.

According to ESET experts, contrary to what most believe, cyberbullying is not limited to social media, but often occurs on various platforms and even manifests itself in many ways.

On social media, cyberbullying could seem innocent, especially when perpetrators disguise their intentions by creating memes with jokes known only to themselves, the potential victim, and other members of a common social group, such as classmates or members of a sports, social or ecclesiastical team and so on.

Alternatively, cyberbullying can take place secretly in private groups and chat rooms, with the material being deliberately leaked to the victim. All this makes it difficult to locate the incident. However, cyber bullies often do not think that they can be perceived, and so they will underestimate, humiliate and publicly attack their victims to make them more ashamed.

Another hotbed of cyberbullying where children spend endless hours is online games. While most attacks come in the form of insults, ridicule or swearing, they are not the only type of bullying that can be found in online arenas.

Often players will pick their victim and then try to make the time spent in the game as annoying as possible, either by killing their online characters over and over again (avatar) or by making a false report on the platform about the victim's behavior. causing him to be expelled from the game. All this makes the game unbearable for the victim.

How to prevent and stop online harassment

First of all adults should spot the warning signs and understand that something is wrong with the child. To protect themselves, kids may drastically reduce their device usage, become ill-tempered, or even delete their accounts and create new ones.

Επιπλέον, δε θα πρέπει να περιμένετε να προκύψει συμβάν διαδικτυακού εκφοβισμού για να ασχοληθείτε με το . Οι γονείς θα πρέπει να συζητήσουν εκ των προτέρων με τα παιδιά τους για το διαδικτυακό εκφοβισμό και για άλλες παγίδες του διαδικτύου. Τα παιδιά θα πρέπει να γνωρίζουν ότι μπορούν να εμπιστεύονται τους γονείς και τους δασκάλους τους και να συζητάνε μαζί τους τα προβλήματά τους. Ένα καλό μέτρο προστασίας είναι η χρήση προγραμμάτων γονικού ελέγχου (parental control) ώστε οι γονείς να ελέγχουν τι κάνουν τα παιδιά τους στο internet, αν και ορισμένοι μπορεί να το θεωρούν παραβίαση της προσωπικής ζωής των παιδιών τους.

Children need to know that no one deserves to be bullied and that if they see someone being harassed, they should not remain silent, but should talk and report it to a responsible adult. It is also important to educate children on how to report an incident and how they can keep screenshots and evidence of cyberbullying that they have experienced first-hand or seen as being perpetrated against someone. elsewhere. In addition, they should be aware of the various tools provided by social media and gaming platforms for reporting such events.

More information

ESET experts provide sample websites offering advice, contacts and support for victims of bullying.

To learn more about the ways cyberbullying can affect children, and how technology can help, you can go to the platform Safer Kids Online.

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