How to Avoid Being Cyberbullied

Don’t post anything online you want to keep private., Make use of privacy settings on social media., Limit your online friends., Protect your passwords., Limit access to your devices and accounts.

5 Steps 2 min read Medium

Step-by-Step Guide

  1. Step 1: Don’t post anything online you want to keep private.

    Private messages, pictures, texts, and other content aren't truly private.

    Once they're out there, a bully could get of a copy and use it to harm you.

    It’s best not to post anything inappropriate, embarrassing, or overly personal online.Try the “grandma test” as a rule of thumb: before sharing anything online, ask yourself if you would also show it to you grandmother.

    If not, it’s probably best to keep it private.
  2. Step 2: Make use of privacy settings on social media.

    Most social networking sites and similar services allow you to control who sees what you post online.

    For instance, you can make your profile and posts private, so that only followers you accept can see your content.

    Making your accounts private will limit outsiders from accessing your information, but won’t keep it totally secure. , It’s easy to connect with lots of people online through social networking sites and in other ways.

    If you keep your online circles limited to people you know and trust, however, you are more likely to avoid being cyberbullied.

    You don’t have to accept friend requests, messages, invitations, etc. from people you don’t know or trust.

    If any of your online friends/followers begin to show bullying behavior online, you can defriend or stop following them right away. , If you make it easy for someone to hijack your information, social media accounts, or devices, this could lead to problems.

    If a bully is able to log in to your social media accounts, for instance, they could post mean things under your name or harass your friends.

    To prevent this, do things like:
    Don’t write passwords down, store them in your phone, or share them with anyone else.

    Change your passwords regularly. , Be careful not to let a would-be bully get access to your files or accounts and use that information to harass you.

    For instance, log out completely whenever you use a public or shared computer.

    Likewise, don't let anyone you don’t know or trust use your personal devices.
  3. Step 3: Limit your online friends.

  4. Step 4: Protect your passwords.

  5. Step 5: Limit access to your devices and accounts.

Detailed Guide

Private messages, pictures, texts, and other content aren't truly private.

Once they're out there, a bully could get of a copy and use it to harm you.

It’s best not to post anything inappropriate, embarrassing, or overly personal online.Try the “grandma test” as a rule of thumb: before sharing anything online, ask yourself if you would also show it to you grandmother.

If not, it’s probably best to keep it private.

Most social networking sites and similar services allow you to control who sees what you post online.

For instance, you can make your profile and posts private, so that only followers you accept can see your content.

Making your accounts private will limit outsiders from accessing your information, but won’t keep it totally secure. , It’s easy to connect with lots of people online through social networking sites and in other ways.

If you keep your online circles limited to people you know and trust, however, you are more likely to avoid being cyberbullied.

You don’t have to accept friend requests, messages, invitations, etc. from people you don’t know or trust.

If any of your online friends/followers begin to show bullying behavior online, you can defriend or stop following them right away. , If you make it easy for someone to hijack your information, social media accounts, or devices, this could lead to problems.

If a bully is able to log in to your social media accounts, for instance, they could post mean things under your name or harass your friends.

To prevent this, do things like:
Don’t write passwords down, store them in your phone, or share them with anyone else.

Change your passwords regularly. , Be careful not to let a would-be bully get access to your files or accounts and use that information to harass you.

For instance, log out completely whenever you use a public or shared computer.

Likewise, don't let anyone you don’t know or trust use your personal devices.

About the Author

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Scott Gibson

Professional writer focused on creating easy-to-follow pet care tutorials.

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