Online bullying is on the increase in Russia, particularly on such social networking sites as Vkontakte and YouTube, Yelena Sutormina, Head of the Russian Civic Chamber’s Commission for Development of Public Diplomacy, Humanitarian Cooperation and Preservation of Traditional Values, said addressing a news conference, Cyberbullying and New Information Threats, held by the Parlamentskaya Gazeta newspaper on October 2.
“Today, 93% of Russian children aged between 5 and 11 use the internet; those aged between 5 and 7 spend 39% of their time online and those aged between 8 and 11 spend as much as 55% of their time in the internet. About 60% of kids aged under 11 have their own devices to go online, and 67% of these children have their mobile phones,” the expert said.
According to Sutormina, cyberbullying cases are reported in many regions, such as Moscow as well as the Astrakhan, Kemerovo, Vladimir, Saratov, Leningrad and Moscow regions.
“This year, the number of online bullying cases has increased,” Yelena Sutormina said. Between this year’s January and September, a total of 105 cases were reported, she added.
“Leading online platforms for bullying include Vkontakte and YouTube. Social media are working to delete such content; however, with anonymous groups available on these networking sites, numerous cases of cyberharassment are observed. Many cases are observed on YouTube; this is due to this platform allowing people to register anonymously, which leads to an increase in bullying,” the expert emphasized.
About half of teens face online harassment, Sutormina said. She proposed that mandatory cybersecurity classes should be included in the school academic program.
“We will address the Ministry of Education and the State Duma’s related committees with such proposals,” she concluded.