Staying Safe Online- Bullying and Brainwashing

Being online can give you access to a wide variety of products, services, information and communities. Unfortunately, it can also expose you to toxic version of these same things.

Some people may become targets from being subjected to persuasive hate speech, or extremist views. Others may be targeted because they belong to a minority group. However, these issues can affect anyone from any background.

What you can do

Use reputable news sources or verify any news sources before sharing them.
Report actual or suspected extremist approaches/communications to yourself or others, to the police.
Block any toxic content that you come across and report it if you feel safe doing so.
Block any bullies and their associates and report them as necessary.
Regularly review any information about you online and keep to a minimum.

For Children

Do protect your children online as well, they may not yet having learned techniques to deal with this sort of behaviour. It is important to teach them what to do if they encounter bullying behaviour or grooming. Bullying can be defined as actions deliberately targeted to hurt someone else over a sustained period of time. This can include but is not limited name calling, spreading rumours, malicious gossip, excluding, and undermining. Children can also be pressured to take part in a bullying campaign.

Grooming is when someone builds an emotional connection with a child to gain their trust for the purposes of sexual abuse, sexual exploitation or trafficking.

What you can do for children

Set parental controls on all devices including the app store/playstore, web browsers and individual apps.
Check devices to make sure inappropriate content is not being accessed.
Encourage your child to be careful with who they share information with
Talk to your child about their online activity and friendships