The secret lives of your kids online

This easy-access technology has an even darker side — cyberbullying. It’s a problem that WiredSafety.org asserts is growing even as it’s getting more attention.

“For a lot of tweens and teenagers, it just turns into a catfight online,” says Sullivan who discusses this problem regularly when she’s visiting schools.

Since the bullying doesn’t happen face to face, the anonymity can allow the issue to quickly escalate. Sullivan contends that even kids who wouldn’t bully face to face can be quickly seduced by the power rush of bullying — even bullying their friends.

Since the bullying is taking place through communication technology, the victims aren’t even safe at home, where they might obsessively review the cruel texts or Internet posts wherever they have access. Just recently, two news stories illustrated how extreme cyberbullying can become

You might remember  the Florida teenagers who beat up their former friend so they could post the video on YouTube.  And currently, Aftab works closely with Tina Meier, mother of Megan Meier, the 13-year-old in Missouri who committed suicide last year when the boy she thought she was communicating with on MySpace suddenly turned against her.

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In this precedent-setting incident, it turned out that the boy, “Josh,” was actually the invention of Megan’s school acquaintance, and the school acquaintance’s mother. This school year, Megan’s mother, Aftab and Aftab’s Internet safety initiatives will launch a widespread cyberbullying education campaign in schools.

The “Three Cs” every parent should learn
Of course, there’s no way to protect kids 100 percent from the mistakes they’re bound to make — both with technology and with life. However, Aftab points out that open communication can go a long way.

She points out that technology is a tool that can be used to great benefit or detriment. When it comes to supplying kids with these tools, she urges parents to follow the Three Cs: Content, contact and cost.

“Even parents that don’t know that much about technology can ask the salesperson these questions,” Aftab says. “Can this piece of technology allow access to questionable content, and if so, can it be filtered? Can it be protected from malware that might cause the device to blow up? Can it download movies or music illegally that can lead to getting sued? Can it allow contact with others, and if so, can that communication be monitored? And then, cost. Ask if the device will have other costs, such as ring tones or music.”

Will those Three Cs barricade your little angel from the pitfalls of a wired world? Eh, not so much. But combine it with “communication,” and you’ve at least added padding when they fall.