Ohau School - Levin (Feb 2011)

lenaber twin 4 safety posters for Room 3 Ohau-1

St Brigids School (Johnsonville) Feb 2011

 

Daryl Arellano

Mariano McClean

Hannah-Rose

 Grace Ohlsson

 

 Jordan Kosmadakis

Brandon Turner

 

Edrick Sy

Sarah Down

 

Danielle Ohlsson

Joel Crampton

Gabrielle Barnet Bates

Cyber-bullying advice for parents

What is cyberbullying?

Cyberbullying is bullying using the internet, a mobile phone or other technology like a digital camera to hurt or embarrass someone.  This means bullying can occur even when the child is at home.

Cyber-bullying can include:

·         - Posting nasty or threatening comments through the internet (eg. Emails, facebook, bebo, or game sites such as stardoll.com) or by cell-phone

·         - Sending anonymous messages

·         - Hacking existing website accounts or creating fake profiles for people they want to intimidate or embarrass.

·         - Circulating photos or videos of people they are targeting – these can be real images or digitally altered to cause offence or embarrass the victim.

·         - Spreading rumours

According to the National Crime Prevention Centerover 40% of all teenagers with Internet access have reported being bullied online during 2010.

Research in the UK has shown that because cyber-bullying can continue away from school and at any time of the day or night it often has more of an impact than physical bullying.

Anonymous text messages can make the person being bullied feel like there's no escape.

When pictures or videos are put online these can embarrass the child in front of the whole school and can rapidly spread and be viewed by anyone all over the world. Even if the original bullying website or video is deleted it can be saved by individuals and can be  hard to remove completely.

What can I do to prevent cyberbullying?

·         1. Talk with your children about cyber-bullying and make sure they understand the issue.  Help them to know it is against the law to threaten people.

·         2. Reassure your child that you will not prevent them from using the internet or cell-phone if they tell you about cyber-bullying.   

·         3. Advise your child to be careful who they give their mobile number and email address to and to not pass on friends' numbers or email addresses without asking them first.

·         4. Remind them not to respond to texts from people they don’t know.

·         5. Talk with your child about what images, if posted online or sent on a mobile phone, could get sent on to others and be used to bully or embarrass them.

What can I do if a child is being cyber-bullied?

·         1. Congratulate the child for telling you. 

·         2. Keep evidence by saving phone messages and by taking photos of the website screen.  This may be used later if you report the bullying to school or the police.

·         3. If physical threats are made, contact the police. Making threats of harm is a crime in New Zealand and in many other countries.  

Cyberbullying and school

If you think the person bullying your child is at your child’s school, tell the Principal as soon as possible.

According to the law in New Zealand, schools are to provide a “safe physical and emotional environment for students” (Education Act 1998).  This includes cyber-bullying because it has implications on the child's well-being at school even when it is done outside of school.

Cyberbullying on websites

Report internet cyberbyllying to the website where the bullying took place - usually there is a “Report Abuse” button or "Safety" link.

Cyberbullying on IM / online chat

If you can, block the bullying messages coming through.

Take screenshots of any bullying messages sent and save them as evidence.

Cyberbullying and mobile phones

Contact your phone company and ask them to trace the number sending messages, they can warn the bully to stop sending messages or they could lose their number or access to the network.  Or as a parent, you could ring the number that appears on the phone yourself and explain to the bully that what they are doing is unacceptable and you will be contacting their school, their parents and the police if they don't stop.

PRIVO - Privacy Certified

For a site to be PRIVO certified, they have to meet the requirements to participate in the Privo Privacy Assurance Program which is approved by the Federal Trade Commission as an authorized safe harbor under the Children's Online Privacy Protection Rule (COPPA).


To confirm the website your child is playing on legitimatly participates in the Privo Privacy Assurance Program, check the url and make sure the page starts with, http://www.privo.com. 


Privo is an independent, third party provider of youth registration.  In order to be a member of the Privo Privacy Assurance Program, companies must meet definitive standards to assure they are fully compliant with COPPA.  such standards must be strictly adhered to in order to ensure safe and responsible online interactions between websites and children under 13 years old.


Therefore, we recommend parents check to see if the website is Privo certified before allowing the child to play.  But even if the website is certified, parents still need to keep a good eye on what their child is doing on line and to encourage children to not give out any personal information.

COPPA Compliant

·         COPPA

The Children's Online Privacy Protection Act, or COPPA, is a federal law (US) created to help protect children online. This law makes it illegal for websites to require a child to provide personal information to use the materials or games on a site. It also requires websites to obtain parental permission before collecting or using a child's personal information, which includes their first and last name, phone number, address or Social Security number. 

Therefore, we recommend parents find websites that comply to COPPA and bookmark these websites so children can easily find them.  We also recommend that parents talk to their children and insist they can only play on websites that have been bookmarked by parents and if they want to play on any other website, they must ask first.

However, despite the website being compliant with COPPA, parents should still explain to their children the dangers of giving out personal information over the Internet and closely monitor their children's Internet usage.

One in seven children experience a sexual solicitation while online

One in seven children experience a sexual solicitation while online (National Centre for Missing and Exploited Children, 2006).

Parents need to make sure they are aware of where children are playing on the internet.  The best way to know if a child is safe is to give restrictions on where the child can play online.  Check out safe websites and ensure the child only plays on those selected sites.  Sites which are guaranteed to be safe are those that are COPPA compliant which means the website does not take any personal information such as the child’s last name, address, phone number etc.  Parents also need to encourage children to NEVER give out such information on-line.

Parents need to encourage children to talk to them whenever they feel uncomfortable while playing online.  Children need to be encouraged to tell parents when they are bullied on line or when somebody says something that makes them feel unpleasant in any way.

            Software that blocks access to certain websites or tracks online usage can prove useful, but it is not always enough to keep children safe. There is no substitute for active parental involvement, conscientious computer monitoring and open communication between parents and children when it comes to Internet safety.

Parents need to be aware of warning signs that may indicate their child may be involved with an online predator. These warning signs may include receiving phone calls from strangers, unsolicited gifts arriving in the mail or finding pornography on the child's computer. Other warning signs often include suddenly turning off the computer when a parent enters the room, a sudden withdrawal from family, a reluctance to talk about online activities and spending long periods of time online, especially at night.  Children who display any of these warning signs need to be closely monitored. If parents discover their child has been involved in an inappropriate relationship with an adult online, they should call their local police department immediately.

Precautions Online

·       Parents should always talk to their children about simple precautions they can take to protect themselves when they are online.  Children should be advised not to post personal information online, even when they believe they are directing it toward a friend or loved one. Parents should also explain that information posted online is permanent, and that pictures and information posted online may be shared or altered by others without their knowledge.

·          

·  Children should understand that they should never post anything online that they wouldn't say to someone in person. Children also need to understand that many people are not what they appear online, and that they need to be extra cautious when "meeting" people online who they don't know.

·          

·  Parents should tell children that they should always trust their gut if they have suspicions that someone online is up to no good, and encourage them to speak up when something happens online that makes them uncomfortable. Parents should also prohibit their children from entering chat rooms, telling their online passwords to friends or meeting people in person.

PARENTS: Keep Kids Safe on the Internet

PARENTS:

 

- DO YOUR RESEARCH: find safe, child-friendly sites.Bookmark these sites for easy access.

- MAKE AN AGREEMENT: let your child know which sites he/she can play on and which sites are off-limits.

 

-BE AWARE: Keep communication open.  Let your child know he/she can talk to you about anything. Pay attention to his/her web-surfing habits

-REPORT SUSPICIOUS ACTIVITY:  If you or yourchild encounter suspicious or dangerous sitituations on line, report them to your internet service provider and to your local police