INTRODUCTION

Between cell phones, social media websites, and online gaming, children today seem to have more outlets for interacting with each other virtually than they do for interacting with each other in person. However, with all of the good social interaction that is done as a result of these technologies also comes the bad. In addition to the physical and verbal bullying that may take place at school, cyber-bullying in the form of harassing text messages and derogatory posts on children’s Facebook or Twitter accounts is now commonplace. Even though it may not take place in person, the emotional and psychological effects of cyber-bullying are just as destructive. Since new media and cell phones are harder to track and monitor, parents need to take preventive measures that can help minimize the effects of cyber-bullying on their children

Advantages of Cyber Media

• The Media impact on the society has been positive because it has assisted in spreading information to the masses. News updates reach people within a few minutes through the media and makes them aware about the world they live in. The positive impact of media on the Indian society is that it has made the conservatives more liberal and educated. Media enable the people in India to watch different cultures around the world and gain inspiration.

• The rise and evolution of social media has changed the definition of communication and social interaction. We have seen how different social media platforms like Facebook and twitter have brought a revolutionary change the way we used to use Internet for both personal and professional purpose. There is no doubt or space to deny the effective impact of these social media platforms on our regular life, professional life, and even on our business. Every good this has some drawbacks and loopholes, and it is advised to be aware about those loopholes before getting trapped inside of those loopholes. Online or cyber security is one such issue which is directly involved with the uses and impacts of social media networks.

PRECAUTIONS

• Many people have to pay the price after being the victim of cyber crime at different social media platforms. Many people even terminate and deactivate their social media account after such bad experiences.  It is not the solution to deactivate or terminate the account when we can minimize the risk of cyber attack on our social media profiles by following some easy principles. At first you must determine which information to share and which are not. Almost every social media platforms will give you the option to decide how much information you want to share with your friends and other people on that network. You can make you profile extremely private or extremely public as per your requirement.

If you're concerned about timing when you should adjust security settings, there's a convenient online alarm clock which people are using to alert themselves at various points throughout the day, which comes in handy in terms of waking yourself up during vulnerable times of night.  This online alarm will make sure you're up, and even provide you an intuitive means to hear sounds...it's great for situations such as this.

• It is advised to customize the security setting of your social media profile at the time you are configuring your account for the first time and check those setting in a regular manner after a while. Be very selective and careful for both send and accept friend request, especially from unknown people. Be very careful when you are going to join any group over those social media platforms. Always try to verify the identity of any individual before you are going to send or accept any friend request. Avoid any request from those people, who are not known to you. Be very careful if you need to provide too much personal information during joining any group.

DISADVANTAGES

The concept of cyber security came in front when the number of Internet users are started increasing around the world and people are involved with online financial transactions. The term cyber crime is confirmed as the official crime term as criminals started getting more aggressive over the online and becoming a threat for millions of Internet users. Social Medias are considered as part of life for a major portion of Internet users. Almost every internet users have at least one or more accounts in different social media platforms. The risk factors of social Medias can be categorized to the following categories.

• Identity theft is the key threat to many social media users, as millions of online users use their personal information in order to getting registered with one or more social media platforms. Such huge information with personal data of so many people is one of the easiest targets for many cyber criminals. Many users are also provided information about their credit or debit card and use those cards to purchase different products, items or services through these social media platforms. This is why the cyber criminals around the world are continuously trying to get inside the personal details of many users from those social media platforms.

• School violence, the threat of violence, and harassment continues to worry educators locally, nationally and internationally. Although violence exits in its rawest form, i.e., shootings, rape, kidnapping, and bomb threats; more passive and pervasive forms of harassment and/or bullying also exist.

As we know bullying is as old as civilization itself. It has taken forms such as intimidation for lunch money, a slap on the head, a skirt pulled up or pants pulled down, and that seemingly never ending sororities and fraternities use of "beatdowns." We all remember that one person or persons who made someone's life miserable on a daily bases at school; where a student literally lived in fear.

A new level of bullying has come over time with the easy accessibility of cell phones and computers. Cyber bullying, cell phone texting, and cell phone sexting have rapidly become more subtle and prevailing forms of harassment/violent acts within our schools and the lives of our private and public school children. Cyber bullying by federal and state statute definitions includes "bullying or harassment by use of any electronic communication device which can include but is not limited to email, instant messaging, text messages, blogs, mobile phones, pagers, online games, and websites"

Kids that are bullied are likely to experience anxiety, depression, loneliness, unhappiness, and poor sleep  Making the issue worse is the fact that such negative effects of bullying often go unnoticed, as many victims feel the need to conceal the fact that they are being bullied because they are embarrassed or afraid of further bullying. More often than not victims respond passively to bullying. They tend to act anxious and appear less confident. They may become quieter in class and, as a result, the bullying can become a hindrance on their academic success. Therefore, bullying is a problem that, if left unattended, can become a significant hurdle in a child’s development. 

Yet while the victim might be passive, it is imperative that the parent is not.  in order to prevent cyber-bullying, parents must be actively involved in their children’s cyber lives. Communication with one’s children is the key to bully prevention. So send them a friend request on Facebook. Play some XBOX Live—or another system with online gaming—with them. Parents who are proactively involved with their children’s interactions online are subsequently able to monitor these interactions more closely. Therefore, such parents will be exponentially more informed with regard to what bullies, if any, exist in their children’s lives, both online and off. 

Creating Safe Spaces

• In addition to interacting more with their children, parents should also take the necessary preventive measures to create safe places for their children to get away from cyber-bullying. The home should be a safe place where open discussion is not only allowed, but invited. Parental supervision and involvement in a child’s social interactions allows for a sense of comfort and protection from bullying. 

• One must not forget about the bullies themselves. Often, bullying is a cry for help and can usually be traced to a time when the bully was in fact a victim of this type of behavior. Thus, creating a safe environment where one’s child feels comfortable enough to talk about being bullied can help put a stop to bullying before it ever starts.