20 Shocking Facts About Cyber Bullying

A few years back, traditional bullying used to be a really disturbing act of harassing someone verbally, socially, or physically. But nowadays, it has morphed into something more gruesome and that is cyberbullying. Cyberbullying is humiliating or threatening individuals especially children and teenagers via electronic means such as the internet or mobile phones. 

The in-person bullying can be tackled and stopped then and there. But cyberbullying is way more upsetting and outrageous. And sometimes, it takes so much toll on the victims that they tend to develop anxiety, depression, and suicidal tendencies. 

Cyberbullying has become more prevalent than ever and it needs to be on the radar of parents and educators. Despite an increased awareness among people, the statistics do not show much improvement in the scenario rather has only seen a surge as a study says. 

Let’s take a look at some cyberbullying facts here and understand its offline consequences, how it hurts their self-esteem and hinders personal privacy.

Source = Breakthrough

1. According to a survey by cyberbullying.org, 15% of surveyed students accepted that they have cyberbullied others in their lifetime.

2. In a survey, 72% of children reported that they are bullied online because of their appearance.

3. As per a survey, almost 13% of victimized children have experienced nasty comments.

4. The male cyberbullies mostly upload objectionable photos or videos.

5. 24% of girls and boys who were surveyed reported that they didn’t know what they should if they are cyberbullied.

Source = Dailymail

6. A survey finds that 19% of cyberbullying often results in the spreading of rumors and gossips.

7. The National Autistic Society released a report according to which 40% of autistic children and 60% of the children who had Asperger’s Syndrome experienced online and offline bullying. 

8. According to ‘The Complicated Web of Teens Lives’ 2015 report, 30% of cyberbullied children who were surveyed had suicidal thoughts. And this increased by 5% in 2015 from 2013.

9. A survey reports that 26% of victims are chosen to be cyberbullied because of their race or religion.

10. As per the ‘2014 Teens and the Screen study: Exploring Online Privacy, Social Networking, and Cyberbullying’ survey report, 87% of today’s youth have witnessed cyberbullying. (11.1)

Source = Mdpcdn

11. According to the ‘National Center for Missing & Exploited Children’, 34% of children had unwanted exposure to sexual material.

12. Girls (41%) are more likely to experience cyberbullying in their lifetime than boys (28%).

13. As per a survey, 22% of harassed children feel that their sexuality was the cause of cyberbullying. 

14. In a survey, 81% of young people said that cyberbullying is easier to get away with than traditional bullying.

15. A Google Analytics report says that there were more than 9.3 million visits in 2016 by people seeking help regarding cyberbullying, bullying, and online safety.

Source = Worldpulse

16. The girls who cyberbully post malicious comments online. 

17. According to ‘Secret Online Lives of Teens Survey’, 20% of children have been harassed online in the past 12 months.

18. ‘The Complicated Web of Teen Lives’ report says that 30% of cyberbullying victims have developed self-harm behaviors. And this increased by 6% from 2013 to 2015.

19. ‘Ditch The Label’ charity finds that Facebook, Ask.FM and Twitter have been the most likely sources of cyberbullying. (11.2)

20. According to anti-bullying charity ‘Ditch the Label’, 7% of victims bullied others because they were bullied.