As a new school year begins, many schools sadly will be setting out to tackle one of the most serious problems now spreading across classrooms: cyber-bullying. While new technologies have opened a whole new world of possibilities for children and adults alike, they have also opened the door to a new type of bullying, where bullies use phones and computers to send photos and threats to their victims.

Recent studies show that in fact, most bullying is now perpetrated online – according to  Professor Jose Antonio Casa of the University of Cordoba, eight out of ten cases of school bullying are committed in this way. As such it is natural for parents to want to ensure that their children don’t suffer from this scourge, and fortunately, there are ways to fight back.

Firstly, there are some obvious key steps. Understanding what constitutes cyber-bullying by attending talks provided by schools is an initial step that parents can take in order to identify the threat and fight back.

It is also important to keep an eye out for possible changes in behavior that could indicate that something is amiss and of course, to let your children know that you are there to give them the support they need, especially if something happens to them.

In addition to these first steps (and others such as getting to know the language that young people use today), there are also technological solutions to help combat cyber-bullying.

Use Parental Control tools

In general, it is practically essential to use parental control tools to protect your children. The reason is to be aware of what kids are writing on the devices they use and to monitor their activity on computers, tablets and smartphones. Whilst you can achieve this by literally looking over their shoulder, it is far easier to take a technological approach.

Panda Protection Service includes a range of tools to protect kids from cyber-bullying as well as the other threats they face on the Internet. In addition to blocking inappropriate content, the service lets users ensure that photos and other files remain private. Moreover, it doesn’t just monitor Web browsers on numerous devices (computers, tablets, smartphones…), it can also control the apps downloaded onto all mobile devices.

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