Cyberbullying

 Cyberbullying, otherwise known as cyberviolence it is violence channeled in direction of other peoples performed with usage of internet and other electronic medias like: e-mail, websites, chatrooms, discussion forums. Other forms of cyberbullying are using internet communicators or sms texting.

Results of study performed by GEMIUS in Poland show that:

•                     every second respondent (52 %) had contant with at least one form of verbal violence in realm 

            of Internet or via cellphone

•                     Most common complain concerned vulgar insults (47% of respondents)

•                     Every fifth respondent (21 %) was humiliated or ridiculed

◦                     Results of studies showed that even blackmailing or intimidation occured, this happened to

            16% of respondents

•                     57% of respondents complained about pictures or videos placed in the Web without their  

            permission

It is needed to ask yourself a question: Why security in the Internet is so important? Because internet violence or opression can be very dengerous. Why? One of the reasons is that every insult  (or private data) can be promptly send to hundred of thousands of people. Expansion of digital photography and video ( for example cameras in cellphones) makes it very easy to come into possesion of embarrassing photos or easily concoct normal ones.

Technological possibilities are fostering rise in agression level in the Web. Peoples can place their websites in some egzotic country which makes it nearly impossible to trace and shut down. Impunity is the key problem along with anonymity. Another factor is psychological easiness of humiliating other people which offender don't have to face in real life. It is obvious that psychology of the crowd takes place as well.

Are cyber crimes dangerous? It depends mainly on psychological resistance of the victim. One third of teenagers tested in study performed by Gemius declared that violation of their dignity in the web does not bother them. On the other hand 60% of respondents admit that those attacks make them nervous and angry, 40% - unpleasantness, 18% - fear, 13% - shame.

The most dangerous kind of internet violence is this kind of psycholgical and verbal agression which concerns social image of victim. Courage of aggressors often yields from conviction that they are "annonymous" but in reality "annonymous" does not mean "undetectable". When internauts will realize that everyone can be traced in the Web problem of Cyberbullying should decrease in volume.