What does cyberbullying mean? According to Merriam-Webster dictionary it means :The electronic posting of mean-spirited messages about a person (as a student) often done anonymously. This is hurting many people in our society, and we need to put an end to cyberbullying.

According to dosomething.org, nearly 43% of teens have been bullied online, one in every four of those people have been bullied more than once. Over 80% of teens use cell phones regularly which makes it the most common medium for bullying. There are many ways people can be bullied online: Ask fm, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, email, online chats, etc. Seventy percent of teens have seen frequent bullying online. Ninety percent of teens who have seen social-media bullying say they have ignored it. Eighty four percent have seen others tell cyber bullies to stop. Girls are twice as likely to be victims and perpetrators. Why is cyber bullying such a frequent thing? Well 81% of teens think bullying online is easier to do and get away with than in person, that’s why you see cyber bullying so often. Adults do not know very often when this is going on because only one in ten victims tell a trusted adult or parent.
Why do people cyberbully? When it comes to cyberbullying, they are often motivated by anger, revenge, or frustration. Sometimes they do it for entertainment, and many do it for laughs or to get a reaction. Some people do it to be the tough guy or girl. It is done sometimes just to remind people of their own social standings. They do it for power, to torment people, or for their own ego. Because their motives differ, the solution to each cyber bullying incident has to differ as well. Kids that have been cyber bullied are more likely to use alcohol and drugs, skip school, be bullied in person, be unwilling to attend school, receive poor grades, have low self esteem, and have more health problems.
A Missouri woman was indicted on federal charges of causing the suicide death of a teenage girl who frequented the social networking site MySpace. An eighth-grade student from Pelham Middle School, N.Y. was the recipient of insulting remarks posted on her MySpace page by a classmate. Another eighth grader received embarrassing comments as she instant messaged with friends. A 13-year-old Vermont boy was bullied for months online. He eventually committed suicide. These are but four examples of a problem known as cyber bullying.
How can we prevent cyber bullying? We can educate the kids and teens about it and its consequences (losing your ISP or IM accounts). Educating kids about this problem at an early age could help prevent cyber bullying. If they know how it affects people and the negative consequences of it, they would not do it. Another way is to have anti-bullying campaigns. This will make bullies think twice about doing it, the victims will feel safer knowing there are people helping and keeping them safe. A study showed 10% of school absences were due to kids being afraid of coming to school. If they felt safer, they would not be afraid and would come to school and participate more. If you are getting bullied, you can always block the person, get off the Internet, or report them to the authorities.
Cyberbullying is obviously a serious problem. Now we have effective
solutions, so it’s time to act and put an end to cyberbullying!