Silencing the cyberbully

In the olden days of computing, before everyone was connected by huge, internet social sites, there were operations called Bulletin Board Services or BBS.

These small, dial-up chat sites had their fair share of mad chatters and the BBS operators tended to handle all of them in exactly the same way. They let the bully write anything he/she wanted, but unknown to the bully, all of the posts went into the trash. To the bully, it appeared that he/she was ranting to the world. But no one else could see any of his posts. And finally the bully just left.

Bullies need audiences.

A study published in the 2015 Journal Computers in Human Behavior showed that three personality traits occur together in a sort of Dark Triad:
– Machiavellianism: Trying to manipulate people.
– Narcissism: Believing they are better than others and trying to prove it.
– Psychopathy: Having a lack of empathy and a willingness to write risky things.

People with these traits may harass and insult, thinking their posts are exceptionally funny and creative. They enjoy seeing people embarrassed and provoked. The more reaction, the more they double down.

Today, dealing with the cyberbully is exactly the same as the old BBS days,
except you have control…

• Defriend.
• Unfollow.
• Block.
• Unlink.
• Report.
• But never respond.

Some organizations online help people who are being attacked:
www.stopbullying.gov
www.stopcyberbullying.org
www.connectsafely.org
ovc.ncjrs.gov