25 March 2015
By Rebecca Avery
New Home Office "Online abuse and bullying prevention guide" published
On the 20th March 2015 the Home Office published a new guide that has been developed for professionals who work with young people, to help them understand what constitutes abusive behaviour online, the consequences of that behaviour, and where they can get help. The guide applies to professionals working in England and Wales. The guide contains practical information, activities and legal frameworks and explores eight negative online behaviours, identified by young people and focuses on helping young people explore the behaviours and consequences. These behaviours are
- Threatening behaviour e.g. credible death threats,stalking
- Trolling – the trend of anonymously seeking to provokeoutrage by posting insults and abuse online
- Blackmail including revenge porn
- Cyberbulling – writing messages with intent to causedistress or anxiety in a public place (e.g. Twitter,excluding people from online groups (e.g. Facebook)
- Grooming online – causing or encouraging a child underthe age of 18 to engage in sexual activity online ormeeting them in person after online contact
- Fake profiles – only illegal if someone is trying todeceive someone for personal gain / fraud / harassment/ intercepting someone else’s messages / stalking
- Hacking Accounts
- Tagging photos with defamatory or negative comments
The guide can be accessed online here and at NSPCC_online_abuse_and_bullying_prevention_guide_3