Parents’ cyber-bullying fears grow

MORE parents believe their children have experienced cyber-bullying attacks than ever before, a survey has revealed.

An international IPSOS investigation found 19 per cent of Australian parents noticed their child has experienced some form of cyber-bullying — a 6 per cent spike since 2011.

The Global Views on Cyberbullying report compiled data from more than 20,000 parents worldwide and revealed 17 per cent believe their children have experienced a cyber attack.

The study, which surveyed parents across 28 countries, defined cyber-bullying as when a child or group of children intentionally intimidate, offend, threaten, or embarrass another child or group through the use of technology.

Two thirds of parents reported the cyber-bullying activity to have occurred on social networking sites.

IPSOS head of public affairs Mari Harris highlighted the dangerous connection between social networking and schools.

“One explanation could be the increasing use of social media among youth,” she said.

“It is also interesting to note 67 per cent of respondents who knew a child in their community who has been bullied, said it was done by a classmate.”

Parents in Russia (1 per cent) and Japan (5 per cent) were the most confident their children had not been bullied online.