The cyber bullying controversy is huge – and recently tragic. The pressure is on owners of social networking sites to prevent cyber bullying. Let Scout lift the weight off your shoulders. We have the expertise and experience you need to keep cyber bullies off your social site.
- We are the eyes and ears on your site 24/7.
- Scout moderators can quickly identify abusive users and take action according to your Terms of Service.
- Bullying, threats and any form of violence, hatred or harassment will take the highest priority.
- Scout moderators will unpublish hate messages swiftly BEFORE they tarnish your brand.
Cyber bullying has a chilling effect on the willingness of the public to continue or even begin engaging in social contact through technology. The potential effect of cyber bullies on the social media sites of businesses is clear. They can tarnish a business’s brand or image and cause users to abandon business sites and Facebook pages, overturning a company’s marketing campaign overnight.
What Measures Exist to Control Cyber Bullying?
In response to the increase of cases of cyber bullying and the public outcry, 34 states have currently enacted cyber bullying laws or included electronic communications as a definition in their harassment statutes. There hasn’t been a law passed at the federal level, but it’s only a matter of time.
A bill introduced to the U.S. House of Representatives last year would make it against the law to “transmit in interstate or foreign commerce any communication, with the intent to coerce, intimidate, harass, or cause substantial emotional distress to a person, using electronic means to support severe, repeated, and hostile behavior.” Anyone found guilty of this crime could face a fine or a prison term of up to two years.
How do Moderators Reduce the Effect of Cyber Bullying?
Moderators serve as your (the administrator’s) eyes and ears on a particular site. They start by familiarizing themselves with the typical users and topics that your organization writes about. They will understand the Terms of Service agreement that your organization has developed, and will provide 24/7 monitoring of your site against that agreement. By premoderating comments by your users, they are able to root out cyber bullies quickly and implement a no-tolerance policy for their behavior.
Some of the tools moderators use to deal with cyber bullies are:
- deleting bashing posts
- using moderation tools to give a “time out” as a warning
- deactivating the account of an incorrigible user
- continuously monitoring “hot spots”
Scout Moderation can help your business to ensure that cyber bullying is completely prevented. Contact us to find out more about how we can be your social media peacekeeper.
