Cyberbullying and Cyberthreats

Book excerpt: Online communications can be extremely cruel and vicious. They can cause great emotional harm and can take place 24/7. Damaging text and images can be widely disseminated and impossible to fully remove. There are increasing reports of youth suicide, violence, and abduction related to cyberbullying and cyberthreats. This essential resource provides school counselors, administrators, and teachers with cutting-edge information on how to prevent and respond to cyberbullying and cyberthreats. It addresses real-life situations that often occur as students embrace the Internet and other digital technologies: Sending offensive or harassing messages Dissing someone or spreading nasty rumors on sites such as MySpace Disclosing someone's intimate personal information Breaking into someone's e-mail account and sending damaging messages under that person's name Excluding someone from an online group Using the Internet to intimidate The book includes detailed guidelines for managing in-school use of the Internet and personal digital devices, including cell phones. Extensive reproducible appendices contain forms for assessment, planning, and intervention, as well as a 9-page student guide and 16-page parent guide. An accompanying CD of all the reproducible forms and student handouts is included with the book.