The popularity of the Internet has made cyberbullying a more serious problem. Cyberbullying usually affects school children and early teens, as perpetrators can easily prey on these victims for their vulnerability.

Cyberbullying is no different from regular bullying – cyberbullies, just like regular bullies, usually pin their own anger or frustration on those they find weaker or who are unable to defend themselves. Cyberbullying’s ill effects on one’s emotional and psychological well-being can inflict physical abuse as well.

Cyberbullying can, however, be even more vicious than you think it seems. Online perpetrators can send threatening or mean messages to their targets through instant messenger or email; post seriously damaging stories, remarks or comments about someone on any social networking site; pretend to be someone else and send embarrassing or malicious emails using that person’s identity; get personal information and other details and then relaying them to others, or post manipulated pictures with offensive captions online for everyone else to see. These vicious tactics can cause irreparable damage to one’s psychological and emotional well being.

As if cyberbullying is not a problem per se, what makes it even worse is that you can never tell who is actually behind these cruel acts because they have the ability to remain anonymous. Anyone can become potential targets from these vicious tactics, while the offender holds no accountability because s/he can remain invisible.

And if that is not enough, victims usually do not report this kind of abuse fearing that it might aggravate the problem or that it might humiliate them. The problem of cyberbullying just seems to be getting worse because there is just a lack of effort to understand the problem, much less, do ways to deal with and prevent this from carrying on.

Parents should not take this matter lightly. More often, a child will be reluctant to report the incident, so you have to be on the lookout for signs that may indicate that your child is a victim of cyberbullying. These can range from your child spending long hours on the computer and trying to hide from their online activity, mood swings to sudden change of behavior such as avoiding social events, aggression, depression and problem with sleeping especially after using the Internet.

We can all become potential victims for cyberbullying and that is why we have to do something about it. But perhaps the reason why cyberbullying still exists and continues to scare even more people out of their senses is that efforts to fight off this menace lack teeth. Laws against cyberbullying, for instance, are just not clear about how to put a stop to it and effectively apprehend these perpetrators.

We need to be vigilant about cyberbullying and other forms of abuse in general. It is a concerted effort among parents, schools, the law enforcement groups and other members of the community to teach children to stand up against cyberbullying not just for themselves but also those whom they know are being tormented by it. This is not to say that you teach them to take matters into their own hands, as it may only make matters worse. But by properly educating children and teaching them how to properly deal with this type of abuse instead of merely putting up or keeping mum can put a stop to cyberbullying.

The damage that cyberbullying can cause is never virtual – it is a real tragedy. And the tragedy that comes with the dangers of cyberbullying is not only yours, or theirs, or others – it is ours. Whatever psychological or emotional pain a victim goes through because of cyberbullying will never be unnoticed. It’s no use pointing a finger, as we may all have to share the blame.