Cyberbullying booklet for youth ages 16-17
Cyberbullying: What is it and how to stop it
For youth aged 16-17 years old
Together, we can #StopCyberbullying
If you’re active online, you’ve probably seen or heard of someone being cyberbullied, or maybe you’ve been the target of it yourself. And while it might seem harmless at the time, cyberbullying can be dangerous. Here’s what you can do protect yourself and take action if it ever happens to you or someone you know.
What is cyberbullying?
You already know what bullying is — simply put, this is the online version. When someone is mean or tries to threaten, hurt or embarrass someone else online, that’s cyberbullying.
It can be:
- Making fun of someone or how they look
- Sharing sexual images of someone with others
- Threatening, harassing, excluding or ganging up on someone
- Spreading hurtful gossip, secrets, rumours or lies
- Creating a poll that makes someone look bad
- Impersonating someone and getting negative attention
- Screen capturing and sharing what was supposed to be temporary
How can it affect you?
Cyberbullying can be very harmful because there is no safe zone. It can reach you anytime and anywhere, and can quickly be seen by a lot of people.
If you’re cyberbullied, you may:
- Feel isolated, lonely, or depressed
- Feel like your self-esteem and friendships are negatively impacted
- Have trouble eating, sleeping or performing well at school, activities or work
- Try to harm yourself or even attempt suicide
Those who cyberbully may:
- Damage their friendships and reputations
- Face criminal charges with punishments, including time in prison
- Limit their future education and career opportunities
Where does it happen?
Cyberbullying can happen anywhere you talk to other people online.
- Social media and apps
- Multiplayer games
- YouTube and live-streaming
- Text, chat or IM
What can you do about it?
To prevent cyberbullying:
- Don’t send or post anything that might hurt someone else
- Treat everyone you meet online with respect
- Assume everything you post (including pictures) is public
- Learn about your privacy settings and do not share passwords
- Do not share personal information or naked photos of yourself or others
If you are being cyberbullied:
- Do not reply with nasty messages
- Save a copy of any messages so you can show an adult
- Block or break off contact with the person
- Talk to your parents or a safe adult
- Report it to an adult, your school, or the site or app
- Go to the police if you feel physically threatened or a crime has been committed
If you see someone else being cyberbullied:
- Do not like or share messages — it can make things worse
- If you know the bully, tell them that cyberbullying is not okay with you
- Let the person being cyberbullied know you are there and you care
- Talk to an adult you can trust so they can help you deal with it
What is your online reputation?
Just like your reputation in the real world, your online reputation is how other people see and think of you based on what you say and do — and it may affect how people treat you.
What contributes to it?
When you’re online, you leave a record of what you do and say for others to see, much of which is permanent. Things that can form your online reputation include:
- The stories, videos and pictures you post or share
- Opinions you express or statements you make
- What you like or dislike and agree or disagree with
- Comments and posts you make about yourself and others
- Comments and posts other people make about you
- Things you buy and rate online
How can it affect you?
Friends, teachers, neighbours, parents, employers — if anyone is curious about you, they can check you out online. If your online reputation is good, it can help you find friends, connections and future opportunities. On the other hand, if it includes mean, hurtful or embarrassing things, it can:
- Give others a negative impression of you
- End, change or limit your friendships and relationships
- Open the door to more negative comments or cyberbullying
- Leave you feeling isolated, resentful or full of regret
- Limit your future social, education or career opportunities and credit rating
How can you protect it?
There are many ways to improve and protect your online reputation, including:
- Think twice before you post: Is what you are saying, showing, liking or sharing going to make fun of or hurt someone else?
- Assume everyone will see it: What you put on the internet may not stay private, so how would you feel if your friends, parents, teachers or future employers saw it?
- Protect your privacy: Frequently update your social media privacy settings, use strong passwords and don’t share them with anyone
- Know who your friends are: Be careful who you accept, pare down your list, and restrict access for friends of friends and the public
- Clean up after yourself: Delete accounts you no longer use and negative content where possible
- Build a positive presence: Make your posts and comments empowering or encouraging, or about a cause or subject you are passionate about
- Ask for help: If you made a mistake or are worried, feel threatened or are being cyberbullied, talk to your parents or another adult you can trust
Sexting and sextortion
You’re probably curious about sex. That’s natural and it’s a healthy part of growing up, but it can have unexpected consequences if you are not careful, or make you vulnerable to people who want to take advantage of you.
What is sexting?
Sexting is creating, sending or sharing intimate or sexual messages, images or videos with friends, people you know or even strangers online or through a connected device. It could be sending naked pictures of yourself or others, sharing a video of someone naked or having sex, or sending a text describing sexual acts.
No one has the right to pressure you into sharing naked images. It may seem harmless when it is with your boyfriend or girlfriend, but be aware that once an image is sent, there’s no way of knowing where it will end up.
How can it impact you or your friends?
In the wrong hands, these images can end up hurting you or other people in different ways:
- It can make you a target of people who want to force or pressure you into sexual situations you don’t want to be in
- It can be very upsetting when they are shown to or commented on by other people
- It can affect the way people see you or act around you, and how you see the world
- It can damage your mental health and self-esteem
- It can have a negative impact on your future education, career and other opportunities
- In many cases, creating and sharing sexualized images of someone under the age of 18 years is illegal
What is sextortion?
Simply put, sextortion is blackmail. It’s when someone threatens to send a sexual image or video of you to friends, family or other people if you don’t provide more sexual images or videos or do what they ask.
What can you do?
You cannot control what other people do, so it is best to avoid the situation:
- Understand what a healthy relationship looks like — loving, respectful and caring, not manipulative, intimidating or pressuring
- Immediately block and stop all communication
- Refuse to give in to threats — do not send more nudes or pay them money
- Keep the correspondence to show those who will help you
- If you get sent sexual materials, don’t forward them to others — you may hurt someone else
- Ask for help from parents, teachers, or another safe adult
- Report it to Cybertip.ca
- Get help removing images from the internet at NeedHelpNow.ca
Resources
You don’t have to deal with cyberbullying alone. Here are some resources you can use if you need help:
Kids Help Phone
Free, 24/7 confidential counselling, information, referrals and support service for young people.
KidsHelpPhone.ca
Text: 686868
Call: 1-800-668-6868
Cybertip.ca
Cybertip is Canada’s online child sexual abuse tipline. If your sexual images are being shared or you are being sextorted, report what happened here.
NeedHelpNow
Need Help Now helps you remove sexual images or videos of yourself that have been posted online and provides you with tips and support if you are being cyberbullied or if you are helping a friend who is going through it.
#StopCyberbullying
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