This is How Parents Can Deal with Cyberbullying | Mobistealth

According to a recent study, it has been proven that kids and teens are more likely to become a target of cyberbullying than to be the target of an online predator. Bullying has never gone away; it has always been there in some form or the other. First, kids and teens used to be bullied in school classrooms and playgrounds.

But now, with the invention of technology and various social media platforms, cyberbullying has replaced traditional bullying. As kids and teens spend long hours on the internet and social media apps, they are more likely to become the target of cyberbullying.

We cannot deny that cyberbullying can be extremely devastating for a kid’s mental and physical health. It can destroy a kid’s life by instilling feelings of loneliness, anxiety, and depression inside their personalities. Most kids do not report cyberbullying because they are scared of what the bullies might do or say to them or they are embarrassed about it.  

As parents, it is our prime responsibility to know that our kids and teens can be gripped by the dangerous effects of cyberbullying if they spend too much time online. Our kids may be becoming susceptible to cyberattacks without our knowing it. Therefore, we must protect our kids from the dangers of cyberbullying and know how to deal with this growing problem.  

One of the best ways to protect our kids from cyberbullying is keeping an eye on our kid’s online and smartphone activity with the help of the best Android spy app. Mobistealth is the best monitoring app that lets you monitor your kids’ texts, phone calls, emails, and instant chats. That way you can know if someone is trying to bully your kid.

How Parents Can Deal with Cyberbullying

It is true that parents can deal with cyberbullying by adopting different measures. While there is nothing that can guarantee that our kids and teens will not be bullied by someone else on the internet, there are many safety measures that parents can adopt to lessen the possibility that cyberbullying will occur and to reduce its effects even if it does occur.

Let’s take a look at some of the measures that parents can consider to deal with cyberbullying and protect their kids from its effects.

Have Open and Honest Communication

First and foremost, you need to have open and honest communication with your kids. It is important to hear out what your kids need to say. If you listen to your kids, they will be encouraged to talk more and be honest with you about everything that’s happening in their lives. They will also be tempted to tell you if they have been or are experiencing cyberbullying.

It’s also important that you communicate with your kids regarding the fun and potential threats of the internet and social media. When you make your kids comfortable around you, they will most likely reach out to you and talk about everything that they are facing in the online world. Hence, always try to have honest and open communication with your kids and develop a trustworthy bond with them.

Educate About Internet Safety

It is also important to educate your kids and teens about the internet and social media safety. As a parent, you must tell your kids about the four important P’s—predators, privacy, pornography, and pop-ups. You must also find out everything about their online friends. For instance, you should know who their friends are, how do they interact with your kids, and do they treat your kids with respect.

You should also teach your kids to never give out their personal details to anyone or never post too much information about themselves that they would not want everyone to see and know. Remember, you should be upfront with your kids—make them know that you will keep an eye on all their online activities, social media posts, friends and followers list, and photos and videos stored on their phones.

Help Kids Deal with Cyberbullying

You can also protect your kids and teens from cyberbullying if you help them deal with it. To help them know how to deal with cyberbullying intelligently, you should talk to them about the potential dangers and ramifications of cyberbullying. You should teach them to always take online threats seriously, even if it may sound like a joke to them.

You should also teach them not to retaliate because when your kids retaliate, they would allow the bully to justify their behavior and your kid would be seen as someone who’s contributing to the problem. The best way is to ignore the bully in the first place. If you think ignorance isn’t really working for your kid, you can teach them to respond calmly and assertively.

Enforce Internet Safety Rules

We cannot stress how important it is for parents to enforce basic internet safety rules at home. As a parent, you must take a strong stance against cyberbullying and other online threats so your kids know what your take on this issue is. You must realize that once a kid is bullied by someone, they can develop the tendency to bully the other person.

Speaking of enforcing internet safety rules, you should always discuss those rules and take your kid’s feedback about it. Make sure your kids follow those rules ardently and if they don’t, you need to hold them responsible. Here are some of the rules that you can impose on your kids:

• Do not respond to messages from people they do not know
• Always report cyberbullying, threats, or other unacceptable behavior that they witness online
• Do not forward photos, videos, or messages that could be hurtful and embarrassing for the other kid
• Seek help from an adult if or when they experience cyberbullying
• Keep the electronic devices in common areas of the house so it becomes easy for you to keep an eye on their screens and regularly monitor their online activities.

Last but not the least, consider installing monitoring software on your kid’s device to remotely view and record their online activities. Installing an iPhone or Android spy app is another best option to constantly monitor your kid’s smartphone activity and to detect unacceptable behavior such as cyberbullying.

While you can consider installing the best Android spy app or iPhone spy app to monitor and detect cyberbullying occurring in your kid’s life, you should remember to tell your kids about the monitoring software and do not monitor them behind their back. That way your kids may lose trust and confidence that they have on you. Our kids and teens need our guidance and vigilance so do it carefully.