Death, self-harm, hatred; Cyber bullying is a growing problem. Internet experts and surveys from www.CyberBullying.us reveal that more than a third of teenagers aged 12-15 have been victimized by cyber bullying. This type of bullying has rapidly increased in recent years with the rise of internet popularity. Teenagers across Britain are suffering from this day after day. In many instances victims feel trapped; they have no where to turn to, no one to trust. Prolonged depression can even result in the victim taking their own life.

Over 60% of cyber bullying occurs on instant messengers (IM) and chat rooms like msn or yahoo messenger. Email, social networking, mobile phones and internet websites are the other primary contributors. 41 percent of victims do not tell anyone in their offline lives about their abuse, but 38 percent did tell an online friend. 17 percent of the teenagers surveyed admitted to bullying another individual online.

Cyber bullying happens in many different ways. In some cases victims suffer from violent death threats, sexual harassment, verbal abuse and mental bullying. There are a few ways to prevent these problems like blocking contacts on IM sites and putting email contacts into junk mail folders. The problem is that most youths are too embarrassed to talk to a teacher or parent about the bullying.

But why do youths and adults alike terrorize such individuals? Interviews have suggested that online bullies pick on other people if they are suffering them selves or are insecure about something. Many teenagers think that bullying someone is just a joke. Young people feel that if they don’t join in they may be bullied themselves.

Cyber bullying can turn a life of happiness into a life of depression and self-hatred. Schools and parents are encouraged to educate young people about the risks of cyber bullying and how to deal with it. Many websites have been designed to give teens a safe easy and anonymous way of getting useful advice including Childline and through links on police websites. But not enough is being done, every year more and more young people suffer and there is a worrying amount of suicidal deaths.

Cyber bullying is a crime; laugh and you’re a part of it.

-Charlie Harrison, Tiffin School