Computers amplify harm as well as good

A catalyst is a compound in chemistry that increases the speed of a reaction without being a part of the reaction. Computers are a human catalyst, they increase our capacity to do things. We can now calculate faster, communicated faster, have instant access to vast amounts of data etc. However what is not discussed nearly enough is that it can also amplify the damage we do to each other.

There are numerous threats on the Internet, most commonly discussed are the threats to our property and our money ( the various phishing and malicious software that is around). However rarely discussed with proper depth is the damage that can occur to young people’s lives though events on their social networking. Two such events are sexting and bullying. Both of these events occur in the real world as well as the virtual, however the effects in the virtual world are increased markedly by the computer amplifier effect.

Sexting is the sending of explicit (read pornographic) images/text etc between young people (under the age of consent). These are often material of themselves or their close ‘friends’. Sexting is at an extreme end of a very busy continuum, young people are constantly sending images and text to each other, the vast bulk of which is just a form of saying hello (keeping in touch). The issue with “sexting” is not the images/text as such, it is the way young people are caught within the bounds of the child pornography laws. Sexting is child pornography by the legal definition and those involve can expect (rightly or wrongly) the full weight of the law, often with little option for discretion. This means that a young person found guilty can be placed on a sex offender’s register, with the whole life ahead of them being highly restricted. This is an activity which can destroy futures. In the US young people of 13 are facing jail for this activity, being placed on the sex offenders register and Florida is debating a sexting bill which will jail young people for up to 5 years. Australia has a similar response.

Bully can also destroy lives. Anecdotally it is one of the highest causes of teenage suicide (accurate figures on this are impossible). Bully is another activity which is on the continuum from friendly banter at one end to outright abuse on the other. It is pretty easy to see what is happening at each end, but the line where banter crosses over into bullying is blurred and changes from person to person and event to event. However it can be very hard for young people caught in the middle as this story shows. This is a real story of a 17 year old in Darwin coping with bullying and what s/he had to go through to get someone in authority to listen. (Names changed to protect ….)

Cyber threats
By {Name Deleted}


Bullying through cyber services has always been a problem since their creation, you hear about issues on the news and never take much notice to them and their outcomes, well I didn’t anyway, until I was a victim.

There was a Facebook page created called “{Name deleted}” who made up unreal stories about all the people that added it. It claimed to go to {School deleted} as a year 10 student, and seemed to know little true secrets about people and then magnified them into a full blown lie.

I made the mistake of adding it to stand up for mates getting bullied by it. It then started saying stuff about me and close mates, I got offended and went off at it and owned it I was at a mates place when this took place and she was backing me up. At this time I guess it felt like it was stuck in a corner, I was waiting for a reply to my awesome comment, instead I received a status update, “{Name deleted} is REAL {bully term deleted}” It had created another “{bully term deleted}” page, it took the way I write and used it in malicious ways. “Real {bully term deleted}” then started rumours about everyone who added it. As {bully deleted} said I was {bully term deleted}, everyone was quick to point blame.

I then started receiving threats by telephone and email. {bully deleted} started screen clipping everything I said and reordered it to look bad on my behalf. That was a little over board, because everyone that was accusing me could see the original comments in the order they were originally posted. This seemed to make {bully deleted} angry and things amplified.

At work I was receiving threats via phone at the most inconvenient times through meetings, briefings, shows, and plots. At this time, I started seeking help from colleagues as they are all adults. I was directed to contact the Telecommunication ombudsman; I took a 15 minute break, and phoned them. They told me they weren’t the right department to contact; they only deal with Internet/phone Service provider complaints. They then told me to contact the federal privacy commissioner, so I phoned them. They also told me that they were not the correct department to contact, they told me to contact the local police.

So during my lunch break I walked to the police station, after waiting ages, they told me in five words, NOT OUR PROBLEM CONTACT FACEBOOK. Going back to work all of my colleagues were so sure that the local police would have been able to fix the situation. But nothing, so I went onto Facebook looking for a contact number or email, nothing anywhere. I did notice in one section under security that they will give information to authorities when a subpoena is provided, but how do you get a subpoena when the police don’t see cyber bulling as there problem?

It led me in circles, the best thing I could do is report the page and hope Facebook will delete it. Day’s later nothing, the anger on the page was getting out of control, death threats thrown left right and centre. I had to do something about it. NOW. I contacted my principal, as I was upset and not thinking properly, he had given me his phone number in the event I ever felt like that after the last time, but because it was 1am I couldn’t call him because it wouldn’t be fair on him because he had work the next day. I sent an email to him explaining the situation, and forced myself to sleep. In the morning I had work at 6am, It was just before show when I received a phone call from school, It was a teacher I tell all my problems to, she told me she spoke to the principal and wanted to know how I was feeling.

There wasn’t much he could do because the bullying didn’t happen at school, but that didn’t stop him; he was on the phone all morning trying to sort it out. I then received several phone calls from the Australian federal police, and a telecommunication conference with the tactical cyber crime team in Canberra.

They said they could find out who it but it would take time, hours later the site had been deleted by them, but that still doesn’t help the people out there angry about all the stuff said on it.

In all honestly cyber bulling isn’t something someone should get off lightly for, it not only caused stress for me at work and home, but it also slandered my name, all my employees have Facebook and if I didn’t inform them it could have resulted in my job being terminated.
It caused a great deal of mental stress and resulted in me being unstable in thinking. There isn’t enough recourses in the community to help fight against cyber bulling. I feel like if it happened again tomorrow, I would still feel like there was nowhere to go, and probably wouldn’t be here.

Something is happening for this young person and s/he has given permission to share his/herstory with others as a warning. Here are some links if you want more information.

LifeLine 13 11 14

Kid's help line on sexting

A new resource ThinkUKnow

Suicide Prevention