John Paul M. Joaquin Tech 02.16.2023 20:Feb PM EST

5 Tips Teenagers Should Remember To Help Them Avoid Cyberbullying

The death of 14-year-old Adriana Kuch due to bullying sent shockwaves across her school at Central Regional High School in Berkeley Township, New Jersey. According to NBC, Kuch's fellow students refused to attend classes and protested against the administration's mishandling of the unfortunate affair and its alleged "culture of violence" and history of ignoring it dating back two decades.

Kush's father, Michael, is calling for justice to be enacted on the four people that harmed his daughter at school.

Although Kuch's bullying happened in person, as evidenced by the video that her bullies posted, cyberbullying is also another reason why teenagers are avoiding school altogether, with some cases having the same consequences as Kuch.

Here are some ways teenagers can avoid being cyberbullied and even bullied at school:

Learn What Cyberbullying Is

Teenagers must understand what cyberbullying is before posting anything on the internet. Doing so gives them the chance to think of the consequences of their post to themselves and others before they click "publish."

It also lets them see the signs of cyberbullying as soon as they see them, allowing them to react accordingly without resorting to something drastic.

Protect Accounts & Devices

Bullies like to incriminate their victims with something embarrassing or even false information about them on social media, where posts like these could reach people almost instantly.

To prevent this from happening, teenagers must protect their social media accounts and devices well to prevent bullies from falsely posting something about them.

Logging out social media accounts from public computers after use is one way to keep accounts safe from others. Additionally, using two-factor authentication and/or similar features prevent bullies from accessing accounts should they manage to figure out the password.

Keep Personal Stuff Private

There are some things that teenagers shouldn't post online for all the world to see, whether they are private messages, pictures, texts, and other content that aren't truly private. Cyberbullies may take what teenagers post and use it against them in some way no matter how little it is.

To prevent this from happening, teenagers should learn what they could post on social media and what not to post. The "grandma test" is a good rule of thumb: If a post is something a teenager could show their grandmother, then it is probably safe for them to share it online. If not, they best keep it to themselves.

'Google' Themselves

No matter how tight a teenager's security is when it comes to their social media accounts, cyberbullies, or even bullies from school may have posted information, false or not, or photos to see their victims' images suffer. Should there be something that bullies could use, have them removed as soon as possible.

This measure is also applicable to information or photos posted by others in the wild without knowing the repercussions.

Never Respond To Cyberbullies

Sooner or later, cyberbullies may target a teenager directly to get a rise out of them and make them respond in the heat of the moment. Teenagers should ignore these messages in any way. They shouldn't argue, try to explain, or engage them in any manner.

Cyberbullies will eventually tire once they are left with one-sided communications. In the meantime, however, record or screenshot these messages and save them as proof of the encounter, as it allows the proper people to step in when necessary.