ADVICE FOR TEENS
Don't post anything that could embarrass you later or expose you to danger. Please remember that Pretty Pink Pearl is public and many people have access to what you post, including potential employers, colleges, your teachers and people at school that you might not even know. You shouldn't post photos or info you wouldn't want adults to see or indeed people you don't know in the offline world. Remember Pretty Pink Pearl is public, so only post information you are happy for strangers to see.
Avoid in-person meetings. Don't get together in person with someone you "meet" online unless you are certain of their actual identity. Talk it over with an adult first. Although it's still not risk-free, arrange any meetings in a public place and bring along friends, your parents, or a trusted adult.
Think before you post. What's uploaded to the net can be downloaded by anyone and passed around or posted online pretty much forever. You shouldn't post photos or information about yourself that you wouldn't want adults or people you don't know to see.
Don't say you're older than you are. Pretty Pink Pearl members must be 13 years of age or older. We take extra precautions to protect our younger members and we are not able to do so if you do not identify yourself as such. Pretty Pink Pearl will delete users whom we find to be younger than 13, or those misrepresenting their age to access content or areas they should not.
Protect your privacy. Set your profile to Friends Only which lets only your friends view your profile. All users are automatically assigned a Members Only profile. Only accept friend invitations from people you know and trust.
People aren't always who they say they are. Be careful about adding strangers to your friends list. It's fun to connect with new Pretty Pink Pearl friends from all over the world, but remember that you don't really know who is on the other end of an Internet connection.
Harassment, hate speech and inappropriate content should be reported. If you encounter inappropriate behaviour, inform your parents or a trusted adult and report it to Pretty Pink Pearl or the authorities.
Don't get hooked by a phishing scam. Phishing is a method used by fraudsters to try to get your personal information, such as your username and password, by pretending to be a site you trust. If you suddenly start receiving strange bulletins or messages from a friend, they might have been phished. Check with them before opening any files or clicking on any links. If you think you, or a friend, are victims of phishing, change your password immediately.
WHEN TO TALK TO ADULTS
Many times, teens are able to take care of the cyberbullying on their own, but sometimes it gets out of hand and it's helpful to talk to an adult about what is going on. If you feel scared or overwhelmed, maybe even trapped, it's definitely time to talk to an adult.
If you don't feel comfortable speaking with a parent, seek out other adults or authorities like a teacher, school counselor, a youth group leader, or other adult family member such as an aunt or uncle.
For more information and resources about how to stop cyberbullying, please visit the following sites:
Beatbullying - provides advice on anti-bullying strategies of young people by young people.
Bullying UK - offers an email advice service for children and young people, as well as online help and information for schools and pupils.
Childline - provides children and young people advice on a range of problems from bullying and eating disorders to racism.
Click on the links below to get more information to help you stay safer online.
The Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre (CEOP)
Home Office Identity Fraud Steering Committee
ADVICE FOR PARENTS
First and foremost, it's important to have an open dialogue about Internet use and online safety with your teens. Experts recommend setting boundaries for Internet usage just like any other medium such as TV or the phone. Ask your teen about how they use the Internet, what social networking sights they have joined and who they connect with while online. Let your teen know that you are interested in seeing their profile and who their friends are.
You can also search for your teen on Pretty Pink Pearl using our search functionalities. Simply enter in their first and last name (or their email address) and review the search results to see if your teen is on the site.
CYBERBULLYING
Cyberbullying is a form of bullying and can be defined as the use of information and communications technology, deliberately to upset someone else. It can be used to carry out all different types of bullying, such as racist bullying, homophobic bullying, or bullying related to special educational needs and disabilities. Instead of the perpetrator carrying out the bullying in person, they use technology as a means of conducting the bullying.
Cyberbullying occurs in many different places online, including through instant messaging, on social networking sites, via email, and in chat rooms. The most common place cyberbullying occurs is over instant messenger, but it also can occur via other new technologies such as text messaging on mobile phones and personal digital assistants (PDAs).
For parents it's important to educate yourself about cyberbullying.
The department for children, schools and families have produced these safety tips for parents:
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Be aware, your child may as likely be a cyberbully as be the target of cyberbullying. Be alert to your child seeming upset after using the internet or their mobile phone. This might involve subtle comments or changes in relationships with friends. They might be unwilling to talk or be secretive about their online activities and mobile use.
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Talk with your child and understand the ways in which they are using the internet, mobile phones and social networking sites.
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Just as you ask your kids about where they go and who they're with after school, ask them which Web sites they visit and who they chat with online.
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Remind your child not to retaliate.
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Keep the evidence of offending emails, text messages or online conversations.
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Report cyberbullying:
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Contact your child’s school if it involves another pupil, so that they can take appropriate action.
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Contact the service provider.
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If the cyberbullying is serious and a potential criminal offence, you should consider contacting the police.
Talk about Internet safety. Kids want to know that you "get it."
All users should be aware
that it is not acceptable for any adult or adolescent to approach any member of Pretty Pink Pearl aged 16 or under with the aim of developing a sexual relationship with them in the ‘real world’. This behaviour will be considered an offence as predatory behaviour which can be prosecuted before a sex offence has taken place where there is evidence of an intention to abuse.
Such approaches can involve the assumption of a false identity, in particular the pretence of being a child, though this is not always the case. Children’s exposure to inappropriate conversation; unwittingly becoming the subject of sexual fantasy; being sent indecent or obscene images; being asked to send indecent images of themselves and/or their friends; being engaged in explicit sexual talk and/or being encouraged to perform sexual acts on themselves and/or their friends (so-called cybersex).
