Cyberbullying becoming a new inet problem (Engelska)

Nearly one in three teenagers who use the Internet say they have been harassed online by ?cyberbullies? who spread rumors, post embarrassing pictures, make private conversations public and even send threatening messages. ?Bullying has entered the digital age,? the Pew Internet & American Life Project stated this week in a report based on a telephone poll of 935 kids, ages 12 to 17. Adolescent cruelty has moved from the whispers and shouts of the schoolyard to the online world, where teens often feel insulated from the consequences of their actions, kids reported in focus groups conducted in addition to the poll. One 15-year-old boy admitted threatening to kill a girl in an electronic message.?I played a prank on someone but it wasn?t serious,? the boy told researchers. ?I told them I was going to come take them from their house and kill them and throw them in the woods.

It?s the best prank because it?s like ?Oh my God, I?m calling the police,? and I was like ?I?m just kidding, I was just messing with you.? She got so scared though.? Girls reported being bullied online more often than boys, with girls aged 15 to 17 being the most common targets. Fifteen percent of teenagers who use the Internet said their private e-mail, instant messages or text messages have been forwarded to others or posted to public sites without their permission. Thirteen percent said rumors have been spread about them online, and another 13 percent have received threatening or aggressive e-mails, IMs or text messages. Six percent said cyberbullies have posted embarrassing pictures of them online. I?m pretty sure most of you have also an experience with cyberbullying, especially if you are an user of some personal forum or site like Facebook. Although I do not consider it as a real threat yet, it may be really annoying for some people.

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