Online Cyber-Bullying Attacks Increased 50 Percent From 2000 To 2005

July 15, 2008 11:59 a.m. EST

Concord, NH (AHN) - Cyber-bullying is rising as "netizens" find it easier-and-easier to post photos and videos on social-networking websites and harass victims.

A report by the University of New Hampshire's Crimes Against Children Research Center says the number of young Americans between the ages 10 to 17 who experienced online harassment increased 50 percent from 2000 to 2005.

The same report said the number of youth who admitted they made rude or nasty remarks to another person using the Internet rose from 14 to 28 percent for the same five-year period.

Corinne David-Ferdon, a health scientist at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, lamented the lack of sufficient cyber-bullying research data. Cyber-bullying recently gained national attention after someone posted a video clip on YouTube of five Florida high school girls beating another girl, who previously posted nasty comments about the five girls on MySpace.

Cyber-bullying is worse than face-to-face bullying because "you get a sense that the whole world is being exposed to what is being said to you," explained Bill Bond of the National Association of Secondary School Principals in USA Today.

Victims of cyber-bullying have been driven to so much shame that some have committed suicide.

To address the abuse of social networking sites, Facebook joined 49 states and the District of Colombia in crafting a new safety deal that agreed on 11-point safety features. The agreement includes removal of Facebook Groups dedicated to incest, pedophilia, cyber-bullying and other topics that violate the portal's terms of service.