Cybersafety

Mandy Ross, School Services Manager

Mary Macheras, School Liaison Officer

About us• The Alannah and Madeline

Foundation is a national charity protecting children from violence and its devastating impact.

• The foundation was set up in memory of Alannah and Madeline Mikac, aged 6 and 3, who were tragically killed at Port Arthur, Tasmania on 28 April 1996.

The Alannah and Madeline Foundation

Our Programs and Initiatives

Supporting children affected by violence

• Buddy Bag ProgramThe Buddy Bag program provides children with a backpack full of essential items as they arrive at emergency accommodation

• Intensive Support ProgramChildren who have suffered the negative effects of violence are provided with the relevant therapeutic support essential to their recovery

• Refuge Therapeutic Support ProgramHelps domestic violence refuges across Australia to provide group therapy for children in their care.

• Children365: celebrate them everydayChildren365 gives Australians the opportunity to commit to celebrating their children every day from that day forward

• Better BuddiesBetter Buddies is a whole-school initiative helping to create friendly and caring primary school communities where bullying is reduced

• Cybersafety and Wellbeing InitiativeThe cybersafety initiative aims to make cybersafety a normal part of every young person’s life by equipping them to use technologies in ways that protect them from the associated risks

Our Prevention Programs and Initiatives

• The National Centre Against Bullying (NCAB) is an initiative of The Alannah and Madeline Foundation.

• NCAB is a peak body of experts working to advise and inform the Australian community on the issue of childhood bullying and the creation of safe schools and communities, including the issue of cybersafety.

• NCAB plays an important role in speaking out for children and advocating for their right to be free from violence.

Initiative:National Centre Against Bullying

The Alannah and Madeline Foundation (AMF) and the

National Centre Against Bullying (NCAB):

– Recognised the need to address a new

trend: The shift of bullying campaigns to cyberspace

– Consulted and conducted a needs analysis, literature review

and qualitative study

The Cybersafety and Wellbeing Initiative

Cybersafety Quiz

According to Professor Donna Cross’s

latest research(2009), how many children

are frequently bullied face to face?

• 1 in 4• 1 in 5• 1 in 6• 1 in 10

frequently cyber bullied?

• 1 in 10 • 2 in 10• 4 in 10 • 6 in 10

Cybersafety Quiz

What are the two most common reasons

for not reporting any type of bullying?

• Too scared• Make it worse• Technology will get taken away• Nothing will be done

Cybersafety Quiz

How many children and young people

meet someone offline that they first met

online?

• 1 in 4• 1 in 5• 1 in 8• 1 in 10

Cybersafety Quiz

What percentage of Australian parents

allowed their children to go online without

any supervision last year?

• 20 %• 40 %• 60 %• 80 %

Cybersafety Quiz

Most social networking sites require users

to be, how old before they sign up? • 10• 13• 16• 18

In 2009 what was the average age of

users on social networking site Habbo

Hotel?• 9• 12• 15• 18

Cybersafety Quiz

You received an email stating,

“ Congratulations you have won the

Nigerian Lottery”

Collectively, how much money did

Australians lose last year in online scams?

• $12 000• $120 000• $12 million• $1.2 billion

Cybersafety Quiz

Illegal or not?

• Two 15 year olds engage in sexual activity.

• A 14 year old girl sexts her boyfriend.

• A 17 year old boy receives a ‘sext’ from his 16 year old girlfriend and forwards it to his mates, it ends up on line.

Cybersafety Quiz

How many young Australians aged 5 to

15 years received a Cyber Safety

presentation at their school in 2009?

• 500,000• 1 million• 1.6 million• 2 million

In 2009: • 2.2 million young Australians ( 5 – 15 yrs)

accessed the internet on their own. • 1.6 million young Australians ( 5 – 15 yrs)

had exclusive use of a mobile phone.

Cyberbullying is …

when someone or a group of people (i.e. students) with more power, repeatedly and deliberately use negative words and/or actions against another person, which

cause distress and create a risk to the person’s

wellbeing …

using electronic means.http://www.ncab.org.au/Page.aspx?ID=86

Defining Cyberbullying

Types of Cyberbullying

Mobile phones: set-up images, video-clips, text messages, masquerading, prank callsEmail: repeated name-calling, rumours, masqueradingWebsites: ‘sham’ sites, hate sites, voting sitesChat rooms and blogs: masquerading, repeated insults Instant messaging:

masquerading, repeated insultsVideo sharing sites:

repeated insultsSocial Networking Sites

repeated insults, mass blockingMMPORPGs:

eg. World of Warcraft: repeated insults

What Cyberbullying isn’t

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NbtajOvAU10

Bullying and Cyberbullying

What Cyberbullying isn’t

Cyber-attack:

A single act of aggression such as an insult, humiliation, nasty name or exposure of private information

Cyber-teasing:

Where the intention isn’t to harm - often identified by the relationships

Cyber- fighting:

Mutual equal conflict

What cyberbullying is not

Bullying and Cyberbullying – the Similarities

• Both are about destructive relationships and power

Motivations are similar, i.e. social power, bonding, acceptance, boredom

Same students mostly involved

• Similar level of distress overall (except perhaps after uploaded images)

Cyberbullying only

• Anonymity and disinhibition contributes to even more anti-social online behaviour

No immediate feedback (e.g. eye contact, distressed expression)

Harder to escape from some of it

• Size of the audience and its longevity may amplify the harm

Cyberbullying only (cont)

• Changing schools doesn’t help much

• Adults are less aware of it (and students fear loss of internet/phone access)

• Friends usually aren’t there for support

• Strangers and teachers can more easily become a target

• Bystanders often play a lesser role

Technology and young people – the risks

• Cyberbullying

• sexual predation: 20% of all children online will be targeted by an online predator of paedophile

• stalking

• accessing inappropriate content

• sending sexually suggestive images

• identity fraud are some of the cyberspace risks facing young people today

1. Cross, D., Shaw, T., Hearn, l., Epstein, M., Monks, H., Lester, L., & Thomas, L. 2009. Australian Covert Bullying Prevalence Study (ACBPS). Child Health Promotion Research Centre, Edith Cowan University, Perth.

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Tips for kids:

• Protect your digital footprint and brand

• Don’t respond to the message or image

• Save the evidence

• Block and delete the sender

• Report the situation to the website or Internet Service Provider

• Tell trusted people – friends, adults, teachers, parents and police if necessary

Worried or uncomfortable online– what to do

Exploring the eSmart Schools Framework

The eSmart Schools model provides a rigorous, evidence-based framework for schools to implement whole-school culture and behaviour change.

help schools develop policies and practices encouraging students to use technology responsibly;

point schools to teaching resources on cybersafety, but also to resources to help create a safe, respectful and caring environment;

encourage schools to embrace the positives of technology for teaching practice and enhance young people's learning;

establish a system for schools to provide evidence that they are actively implementing these policies and practices.

help reduce the digital divide between adults and young people, so adults can become a credible source of advice on avoiding the risks of cyberspace;

esmart@amf.org.au

Registering your school’s interest