A friend recently told me that her ninth grader had received very nasty emails from students in his school. It was around the same time that my daughter received an anonymous IM (internet Messenger) message that called her names and really upset her. Last year, we received a series of threatening messages on our bulletin board, and despite post-Columbine sensitivity, the police, school, and our Internet provider were more concerned with protecting the privacy of the sender, than protecting my children.
Cyberbullies are way out of control on the Internet, and today’s preteens and teens are the main offenders. PEOPLE Magazine ( March 14, 2005; pages 152 – 155) told a story about a 13 year old who committed suicide after being harassed by cyberbullies. This is a very serious problem and needs to be addressed by parents, schools, and local authorities. More attention should be paid to this new form of harassment before cyber threats turn into real life actions.
