When parents look for tools to combat cyberbullying, they often feel overwhelmed. For one thing, cyberbullying was nonexistent in the pre-tech days, so it can be an unfamiliar battle. It can also be hard for parents to keep up with apps and trends in order to have a good understanding of what is really happening with their kid online. And this is especially true when the changes in this digital landscape are even faster than your kid’s Wi-Fi.
To help, we’ve created a list of the five most useful online tools to fight this terrible problem. These can give your child peace of mind while also helping them stay safe.
5 Useful Online Tools
Knowledge is an important part of standing up to cyberbullying, and StopBullying.gov is the perfect place to discover facts about the issue, informational videos geared toward kids, suggestions for protecting yourself, and tips about what to do if you (or a friend) is being targeted online.
The I Am A Witness campaign was created to help kids call out cyberbullying, deploying a specially designed emoji. It’s a way to say “I see what you’re doing, and it’s not okay.” Users can reply to bullying and harassment with the emoji, signaling that negative behavior will not go unnoticed. The movement is uniting and empowering those committed to stopping others who choose to be mean online.
Sit With Us lets you find your place in the lunchroom, library, and beyond while promoting a kinder, more inclusive community. You can also take the pledge to become an Ambassador — someone who welcomes anyone and everyone to join their lunch crew. Making new friends is hard enough. It can be such a relief to know that, at the very least, you have a place at the table.
Instagram’s Comment Filter feature is located within the app, which is one of the most popular with tweens and teens. But it’s also rife with cyberbullying. Of course, you and your child can always delete mean comments and bullying on their posts. But you can also stop it before it happens. One way is to use their comment feature filter. You can choose words that act as a filter and, if used, the comment never even posts. Deleting negativity is a great way to combat cyberbullying and harassment, but stopping it at the source is even better.
Facebook’s Bullying Prevention Hub is an all-in-one page that helps kids, parents, and educators with questions and concerns about online bullying that occur through Facebook Messenger. Through privacy and security checkups, information about online well-being, and tips on bullying prevention, this hub is a great resource for anyone who needs help with their profiles and interactions.
In addition to these helpful resources, our award-winning monitoring service can help take some of the guesswork out of wondering how to stop cyberbullying if your kid is struggling with it. With text and email alerts from Bark, you find out what’s going on and help your kid figure out what to do next.
Bark monitors texts, email, chat, YouTube, and 24+ social media platforms for signs of not only cyberbullying, but also threats like suicidal ideation, sexual predators, depression, and more. for a free, one-week trial.
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Bark helps families manage and protect their children’s digital lives.
