Indian children said that they are more likely to be cyber-bullied by strangers compared to other children around the world, at 70 per cent in India versus 45 per cent worldwide
Around 85 per cent of Indian children have reported being cyber-bullied as well as having cyber-bullied someone else at rates well over twice the international average, according to a McAfee Cyberbullying report released on Sunday. Racism, trolling, personal attacks and harassment, among others are included in cyberbullying.
Covering 11,687 parents and their children across 10 countries, the survey was conducted between 15 June and 05 July.
“Cyberbullying in India reaches alarming highs as more than one in three kids face cyber racism, harassment, and threats of physical harm as early as at the age of 10 – making India the number 1 nation for reported cyberbullying in the world,” McAfee Chief Product Officer Gagan Singh said in the report.
On almost every social media and messaging platform, Indian children witness and experience the maximum cyberbullying.
“85 per cent of Indian children reported being cyber-bullied as well as having cyber-bullied someone else at rates well over twice the international average,” the report said.
“Indian children said that they are more likely to be cyber-bullied by strangers compared to other children around the world, at 70 per cent in India versus 45 per cent worldwide,” it added.
Besides, 45 per cent of Indian children said, due to the relative absence of conversation, they hide their cyberbullying experiences from parents, the report said.
According to Indian parents, strikingly 14 per cent higher than the rest of the world at 28 per cent, 42 per cent of children have been the target of racist cyberbullying.
“Extreme forms of cyberbullying reported besides racism include trolling (36 per cent), personal attacks (29 per cent), sexual harassment (30 per cent), threat of personal harm (28 per cent) and doxing (23 per cent), all of these at almost double the global average,” the report said.
Being excluded from groups and conversations (35 per cent) and name calling (34 per cent), India also reported prominent acts of cyberbullying such as spreading false rumors at 39 per cent.
“Indian children reported cyberbullying up to 1.5 times more than children in other countries across fourteen surveyed platforms, ranging from Facebook and Instagram to Snapchat and WhatsApp. The one exception is TikTok, which remains banned in India,” the report said.
Nearly three out of five (58 per cent) children said that they have deleted a social media account to avoid cyberbullying, versus the 33 per cent global average. Also, 87 per cent said they talk to their friends about cyberbullying, which is 25 per cent above the international figure of 62 per cent, the report added.
Also read: To become a successful technology leader, one must put people first
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