Smart Law Cyberbullying Cyberbullying Lesson Objectives By the
● Smart. Law Cyberbullying
Cyberbullying Lesson Objectives By the end of the session you will be able to: • understand the term cyberbullying; • explain the impact that cyberbullying may have on those involved; • Explore what the law says in relation to cyberbullying. © Citizenship Foundation 2018 • Charity Reg. No. 801360 2
Cyberbullying What is cyberbullying? ‘The use of electronic communication to bully a person, typically by sending messages that intimidate, threaten, harass or relate to stalking another individual. ’ © Citizenship Foundation 2018 • Charity Reg. No. 801360 3
Cyberbullying “The world would be a better place without you. ” What forms can cyberbullying take? “Everyone hates you … watch your back” © Citizenship Foundation 2018 • Charity Reg. No. 801360 4
Cyberbullying What type of cyberbullying have you experienced … 39% Nasty comment posted on profile 34% Nasty comment posted on a photo 68% Been sent a nasty private message 23% Bullied via an online game 24% Had their private information shared 18% Had someone impersonate them online 18% Had their profile wrongfully reported 41% Had rumours about them posted online © Citizenship Foundation 2018 • Charity Reg. No. 801360 27% Had video/photos posted that they didn’t like 5
Cyberbullying Can stay anonymous Revenge Power Social pressure Boredom Low self esteem Why does cyberbullying take place? Won’t get caught © Citizenship Foundation 2018 • Charity Reg. No. 801360 Everyone else is doing it Lack of empathy Easy to ignore the consequences 6
Cyberbullying What impact can it have? Nowhere to hide Messages go viral Drug/alcohol abuse Nowhere seems safe Eating disorders Depression Suicide Anxiety © Citizenship Foundation 2018 • Charity Reg. No. 801360 Truancy Self-harm Victim becomes the bully 7
Cyberbullying Of those who reported being bullied in the past 12 months … 41% Developed social anxiety 26% Deleted their social media profile 20% Skipped class © Citizenship Foundation 2018 • Charity Reg. No. 801360 37% Developed depression 25% Self-harmed 14% Developed an eating disorder 26% Had suicidal thoughts 24% Stopped using social media 9% Abused drugs and/or alcohol 8
Cyberbullying 69% of young people admitted to having done something abusive online … 35% Sent a screenshot of someone’s status or photo in order to make fun of them in a group chat 25% Trolled somebody in an online game 17% Liked or shared something online that made fun of another person 12% Sent a nasty message, either privately of publicly to somebody they know 5% Created a fake profile and used it to annoy or upset somebody © Citizenship Foundation 2018 • Charity Reg. No. 801360 9
Cyberbullying Is cyberbullying illegal? Malicious Communications Act 1988 “It is an offence to send electronic communications which are indecent, grossly offensive, convey a threat, which are false. ” The penalty for sending messages such as these is up to 2 years imprisonment and /or a fine. Communications Act 2003 “It is an offence to send a message via public electronic communications network that is grossly offensive, indecent, obscene or menacing. ” The penalty is up to 6 months in jail and/or a fine Criminal Justice and Courts Act 2015 “It is an offence to disclose private sexual photographs or films without the consent of the individual who appears in them and with the intent to cause that individual distress. ” The penalty is up to 2 years’ imprisonment and/or a fine. © Citizenship Foundation 2018 • Charity Reg. No. 801360 10
Cyberbullying Does the school have a legal responsibility to get involved? Whose actions might result in investigation and/or punishment by the school? © Citizenship Foundation 2018 • Charity Reg. No. 801360 11
Cyberbullying What might the school do about the Facebook group and images? Could the school contact the police? © Citizenship Foundation 2018 • Charity Reg. No. 801360 12
Cyberbullying Everyone has the right to freedom of expression. This right shall include the freedom to hold opinions and to receive and impart information and ideas without interference by public authority Article 10 – The European Convention on Human Rights How do you think the legislation we have looked at might impact this right? © Citizenship Foundation 2018 • Charity Reg. No. 801360 13
Cyberbullying Under the Communications Act 2003 it is an offence to send a message via public electronic communication which is grossly offensive, indecent, obscene or menacing. TRUE In 2015 more that 1, 000 were convicted of this crime? © Citizenship Foundation 2018 • Charity Reg. No. 801360 14
Cyberbullying Under the Malicious Communication Act 1988 it is an offence to send threatening, offensive or indecent electronic communications. TRUE In 2015 more than 500 people were convicted of this crime. © Citizenship Foundation 2018 • Charity Reg. No. 801360 15
Cyberbullying 25% of the people convicted were sentenced to time in prison FALSE © Citizenship Foundation 2018 • Charity Reg. No. 801360 16
Cyberbullying CPS Social Media Guidelines on prosecuting cases involving communications sent by social media. Before deciding to prosecute two things have to be considered: 1) If there is enough evidence 2) If it is in the public’s interest Prosecutors are asked to decide which of these categories the communication falls under: 1) Contains a threat of violence towards another person or a threat to damage property. 2) Specifically targets an individual/s and could constitute harassment, stalking, controlling or coercive behaviour. This also includes the disclosing of private sexual images without consent. 3) Is in breach of a court order e. g. breach of bail conditions or restraining order. 4) Any communication which does not fall into the first 3 categories but which are grossly offensive, indecent, obscene or false. © Citizenship Foundation 2018 • Charity Reg. No. 801360 17
Cyberbullying As a general rule communications which fall under the first 3 categories are likely to be prosecuted. Cases which fall within Category 4 are less likely to be taken forward, unless: • there is an element of hate crime; • the victim was a person serving the public; • there was a coordinated attack (e. g. virtual mobbing where there is a campaign of abuse or harassment); • the victim is targeted as a result of report a separate crime; • the offence is repeated. © Citizenship Foundation 2018 • Charity Reg. No. 801360 18
Cyberbullying A prosecution is unlikely to be both necessary and proportionate if: • The suspect has expressed genuine remorse; • Swift and effective action has been taken by the suspect to remove the communication; • The communication was not intended for a wide audience (particularly where the intended audience did not include the victim); • The communication did not obviously go beyond what could conceivably be tolerable or acceptable in an open and diverse society which upholds and respects freedom of expression. The age and maturity of a suspect should be given significant weight, particularly if under 18. © Citizenship Foundation 2018 • Charity Reg. No. 801360 19
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