Prevent cyber bullying, promote online safety

Gossip, harassment, impersonation — no matter what form cyber bullying takes, it can ruin reputations, harm relationships, and cause emotional damage. And it’s more common than you think: 88 percent of teens online say they’ve witnessed bullying on social media.

If your child is being bullied, talk to them and help them take the following steps:

• Ignore the bully or log off to make them lose interest.
• Block the person from their friend list or email account.
• Change the username and password if a profile has been hacked.
• Contact the company that runs the site if a false profile was created.

Bolder Insurance SECURA policyholders have additional resources through our Identity Fraud Expense and Restoration coverage. Representatives can:

• Help you block websites or users.
• Monitor your child’s online reputation.
• Recover an identity that has been compromised.
• Help you set computer controls.
• Offer advice and assist you in taking further steps to stop the bullying.

To learn more about cyber bullying, visit https://www.stopbullying.gov/cyberbullying/what-is-it.

Tighten your social media security
In addition, talk to your kids about their online security. Remind them not to share personal information such as passwords, birthdays, or locations online. Help them check Facebook privacy settings to determine who can view their information and post on their timeline. Review the posts and photos they’ve been tagged in via the Facebook Activity Log. If you find something you don’t like, they can untag the photo or hide it from their timeline. If you’re on Facebook, require your children to friend you.

This article compliments of SECURA Insurance Companies, A Bolder Insurance partner.