Cyber Bullying: Imaged Based Abuse

by Deputy Principal, Mrs Elizabeth Ryan

Cyber Bullying: Imaged Based Abuse

One very common challenge that has emerged as young people have increased access to technology is student on student Online sexual harassment and image-based abuse.

Winter holidays and the current lockdown result in many of our students having large amounts of downtime and, of necessity, easy access to a range of ICT devices. While for many students this time is used to catch up on study or peruse areas of interest, for a very small majority this burden can lead to thoughtless (and sometimes illegal) behaviour often rooted in a desire to connect with peers, have a voice or a sense of belonging. Regardless of the reason, cyber bullying and imaged based abuse is never acceptable.

While very rare a small number of young people may experience imaged based abuse and I thought that I would use this Crest Article to equip parents to address this should your son ever be a victim of it.

So, what is Imaged Based Abuse? Imaged based abuse “happens when an intimate image or video is shared without the consent of the person pictured. This includes images or videos that have been digitally altered using photoshop or specialised software.

An intimate image includes:

• a person’s genital area or anal area (whether bare or covered by underwear)
• a person’s breasts (if the person identifies as female, transgender or intersex)
• private activity (for example a person undressing, using the bathroom, showering, bathing or engaged in sexual activity)
• a person without attire of religious or cultural significance if they would normally wear such attire in public.” Source: e-Safety Commission

Whilst imaged based abuse can occur for many reasons two things are important to keep in mind: It is not the victim’s fault and the excuse that it was a joke or for a bit of a laugh will not cut it.

For both parents and the victims this can be very distressing and what increases the anxiety of parents is a lack of knowledge on how to support your child and effectively address it.

So, what can be done should your son be a victim of it imaged based abuse?

Step 1 Have the image or video removed. To do this you need to can report the image directly to the e-Safety Commission or you can report to the website or social media platform upon which it is posted.

Step 2 Collect evidence. You may need this evidence to report to e-Safety or the police. Evidence may include names and usernames of anyone involved, screen shots or photos of the abusive material posted online, including posts, images and videos, webpage addresses (URLs) and the name of the social media services platform. It is also important to take note of the date and time you collected the evidence.

Step 3 Report the matter to the e-Safety commission. Go to the e-Safety Commissioner Website and follow the Take action links here.

 

Training for Parents

The e-Safety Commissioner is offering live webinars to parents to equip them with the latest research and strategies on how you can help your child develop the skills to be safer online.

All sessions are delivered by e-Safety’s expert education and training team.

The Term 3 webinar will help parents and carers of young people aged 13-18 understand online sexual harassment and image-based abuse, (non-consensual sharing of intimate images).

The Webinar will cover:

• the difference between online sexual harassment and image-based abuse
• how to report online sexual harassment to social media companies
• how to report image-based abuse to e-Safety and when to report to police
• where to get support if you feel upset or worried about something that has happened online.

   Dates and times offered (Australian Eastern Standard Time)

• Wednesday 28 July 12.30 to 1.30 pm
• Thursday 29 July 7.30 to 8.30 pm
• Tuesday 10 August 7.30 to 8.30 pm
• Tuesday 24 August 12.30 to 1.30 pm

If you wish to attend please register via the link below.

Registration (gotowebinar.com)

Mrs Ryan.