Translation. Region: Russian Federation –
Source: Moscow Government – Moscow Government –
An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.
Children and teenagers daily chat with friends and classmates on instant messaging apps, maintain social media accounts, engage in discussions on industry forums, and leave comments on videos and posts by their favorite bloggers and artists. They also make new acquaintances and friends in the digital environment and gain knowledge. However, the availability of personal data and user anonymity pose hidden threats: children and teenagers can face online bullying, ridicule, and attacks from strangers because of their opinions, interests, or appearance.
Every first Thursday in November is dedicated to the International Day Against Bullying, including Cyberbullying. On this day, experts from the capital's Department of Information Technology (DIT) reminded parents about the rules of environmentally friendly communication and digital safety and gave advice to parents on how to protect children from cyberbullying or minimize its consequences.
What is cyberbullying?
Bullying, or harassment, is systematic aggression against one person by another or a group of people, while cyberbullying, or digital bullying, is attacks and psychological violence on the internet, for example, on social networks, instant messengers, groups, online game chats, and on thematic forums.
The bully ridicules the other person's opinions and words, tries to publicly devalue them, provoke them into losing their composure, and sends threats. Bullies may also conspire to exclude the victim from a public chat or community. Sometimes, this even leads to so-called framing—hijacking the victim's account and publishing deliberately false or negative information in their name.
"Unfortunately, just like in real life, no one is immune to conflicts, aggression, and bullying in the digital environment. Arguments and conversations occur without direct physical contact, and the victim often doesn't personally know the bully. Children and teenagers are more vulnerable and can't always cope with attacks from strangers on their own, and the psychological trauma and consequences of such bullying are no less dangerous than in real life. Thanks to the cybersecurity section on the mos.ru portal and a recording of the online project "Call Back Yourself," you can learn more about how to respond to offensive comments and insults online, as well as simple rules of digital hygiene and eco-friendly online communication that will be useful for children and parents," said Valentina Shilina, project manager.
Call me back yourself capital Department of Information Technology.
Why do children share personal information online?
Schoolchildren find friends online who share their interests—some are into anime, build model airplanes, collect action figures, and love computer games. They post a lot of personal information on sensitive topics to find like-minded people: their age, school number, personal information, their creative work, photos, and videos.
Children and teenagers don't yet have fully developed critical thinking skills. They may not understand that a new online friend's questions are sometimes motivated not by genuine interest in the child's personality, but by an attempt to discover more sensitive information and vulnerabilities. Aggressive users may use this information to start bullying.
The dangers of online bullying
The danger of online bullying is that it can have long-term consequences. If hurtful words and aggression towards the victim continue daily, they severely undermine a child's psychological health and self-confidence. Children may feel trapped, unaccepted by the world, and without a place where they can feel protected and safe.
Psychologists advise paying attention to the child's behavior and emotional background.
Signs that your son or daughter may be being bullied online:
– frequent depression, isolation, irritability;
– refusal to engage in hobbies;
– excessive passion for gadgets;
— the child hides with whom and on what resources he communicates.
In situations like these, it's important to create an atmosphere of acceptance and safety: have confidential conversations and don't judge your child for what they tell you.
How to Prevent Online Bullying
The most effective way to prevent cyberbullying is to instill healthy communication skills and digital safety in your child from an early age. And before they create a personal account on social media or other relevant resources, discuss content—what information can and cannot be published—and discuss rules for protecting profile privacy and sharing personal data with third parties.
Explain to your child that they shouldn't send photos or share personal stories with strangers or other community members. Behind the scenes, new friends may be hiding so-called internet trolls who don't share your interests but want to use the information against them. They deliberately provoke conflicts, write offensive comments, and humiliate others. Their main goal is to provoke a strong emotional reaction, anger, or tears in their victims. After receiving a response, the troll feels victorious and only escalates their attacks. Therefore, only add users your child trusts or knows personally as friends.
Experts offered some more tips on how to prevent bullying. Here they are:
— Teach your child the rules of digital behavior and respectful communication. Talk to them about respecting both personal and interlocutor boundaries, teach them to be sensitive to the interests and opinions of others, and to make balanced comments so as not to offend others;
— Establish a trusting relationship. Children shouldn't be afraid to admit they're being bullied or harassed. This will help reduce the psychological damage in the early stages of bullying and teach them how to deal with similar issues in the future;
Don't micromanage their every move. This may trigger resistance from your child in an attempt to assert their boundaries. Show genuine interest in their digital life: ask what games they play, why they like them, what communities they belong to, and who they interact with online.
Also, talk to your children and explain that not everyone is intentionally trying to hurt each other. Sometimes harsh comments or mean jokes may indicate that the author hasn't considered how the user will perceive them. Digitalization makes people anonymous—even profile photos don't give a complete picture of a person, so people often don't realize that the account or profile name is actually a teenager or younger child.
What to do if your child is being bullied online
If a child is being cyberbullied, the first step is to stop communicating with the bullies. The less emotion the bully sees, the less interested they are in continuing this cruel game.
Experts also recommend not engaging in open dialogue with offenders or trying to explain anything to them, but rather acting rationally:
— Complain to the digital resource's administration about an offensive or disrespectful message, and also report bullying—this will protect both your child and other users from aggressive behavior;
– block the offender so that they cannot leave comments or see content published by the victim;
— restrict public access to the child's account so that only friends and family can see basic information about them, and hide it from outside users.
Useful resources for children and parents
Experts from the "Call Me Back" project shared useful resources that will allow you to learn more real-life examples and hear other recommendations from experts and psychologists on how to protect yourself from cyberbullying and minimize its consequences:
— a recording of the webinar of the “Call Back Yourself” project, dedicated to internet bullyingHere you can get more advice from psychologists and cybersecurity experts;
— useful reminderIt contains key points and recommendations from experts, common mistakes teenagers make online, signs that a child has become a victim of cyberbullying, and advice on how to cope and where to turn;
— special project on the mos.ru portal Internet SafetyIt offers simple and useful tips on how to create secure passwords, protect your accounts from hacking, and avoid online scams.
The online information project "Call Back Yourself" was created in 2022 by the Moscow Government in collaboration with the Main Directorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation for the City of Moscow. It helps Muscovites protect themselves and their loved ones from telephone and online fraud. The project's website provides information about upcoming in-person and online events, as well as expert tips and recommendations, recordings of past webinars, and other useful materials. In 2023, "Call Back Yourself" won the "Best Social Project Website" award at the Golden Site awards. It also received the Runet Prize in the "Information Security" category.
The creation and support of information security tools, as well as countering cyber fraud, are consistent with the objectives of the national project "Data Economy and Digital Transformation of the State."
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Please note: This information is raw content obtained directly from the source. It represents an accurate account of the source's assertions and does not necessarily reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.