1 in 3 Indian Youth Have Been Cyberbullied Due to Risky Online Behaviour

Are you online for most part of the day? Do you ever post sensitive information on your Social Media accounts? Have you ever thought putting up your party pictures with your addresses or mentioning your mobile number can be sources of trouble?

McAfee, part of Intel Security, has released findings of its annual study, the Tweens, Teens and Technology 2014 report, which examines the online behaviour and social networking habits of Indian tweens and teens, and aims to educate on the impact that risky behaviour has on their privacy, reputation and social media experiences.

According to the research, half (50%) of the youth in India have had some experience with cyber-bullying (been cyberbullied online or witnessed others being cyberbullied), out of which one-third (36%) have been cyberbullied themselves. This behaviour was perceived to result in anger and embarrassment, showcasing how online behaviour translates into offline impact. The study highlights how risky online activity can possibly make them even more susceptible to cyberbullying, substantiated through some of the following statistics.

Need to be Constantly Connected

An eye-opening trend is that half (52%) of India’s youth even access their social media accounts while at school, with tweens (57%) being more connected during school hours than teens (47%). Even though the minimum age to register to on social networking sites like Facebook, Snapchat, Pinterest, Tinder, Tumblr, and Vine is 13, 10-12 year olds report higher daily access to than their teen counterparts.

Oversharing of Risky Information

Despite a majority (80%) of Indian youth being aware that their online activity can affect their identity, 92% have done or posted something risky online. An added fact is that of these, 70% have posted their contact details like email, phone and home address.
Youth are increasingly trusting unknown people in the virtual world, in spite of being aware that it is risky. 53% have met someone in person that they first met online. 63% of youth do not turn off their location or GPS services across apps, leaving their locations visible to strangers.

Finding Social Acceptance

Another critical concern stemming from peer pressure is youth feeling compelled to portray an untrue image of themselves online. 64% even admit to trying  to reinvent their online personas making themselves appear older, creating fake profiles or posting photos that are not their own. Moreover, 46% say they would put themselves in danger to see more engagement/ activity on their posts (e.g., more likes, comments, shares or retweets).

Lack of Parental Involvement

Only 46% say their parents have had a conversation with them about online safety. Others say their parents simply don’t care (52%).
Melanie Duca, APAC Consumer Marketing Director, McAfee, part of Intel Security says, “Teens and tweens are very comfortable operating in the online world, yet the risks have never been greater. Young people are often the pioneers for new technologies so they need to understand the consequences of their online behaviour and how they can maintain their social engagement.”

The findings of McAfee’s Tweens, Teens & Technology 2014 report were released at a panel discussion with Melanie Duca, Consumer Marketing Director (APAC) McAfee; Venkat Krishnapur, Vice-President of Engineering - Consumer and Mobile, McAfee India; Anindita Mishra, McAfee Cybermum India; and, Dr. Sunil Mittal, a leading psychiatrist in New Delhi on November 10, 2014.

Speaking about new-age parenting challenges, Anindita Mishra, McAfee Cybermum India said, “The findings of the study reaffirm that the online behaviour of youth needs much more involvement from parents than they are currently providing. As a result, I believe there is an urgent need for parents to update themselves on potential threats such as cyberbullying and become part of their children’s online experience to ensure they aren’t navigating alone through an unrestricted virtual world.”  

“Internet-enabled devices collect information about online behaviour, track location and links to social media accounts which are vulnerable to threats that can disrupt devices and extract personal data leading to cyberbullying and identity theft,” said Venkat Krishnapur, Vice-President of Engineering- Consumer and Mobile, McAfee India Centre, McAfee, part of Intel Security. “Education is key to empowering both parents and children with the tools to tackle these risks.

Top 5 Tips for Parents to Help Educate Their Kids:

1. Connect with your kids. Casually talk to them about the risks of all online connections and make sure the communication lines are open.

2. Gain access. Have passwords for your children’s social media accounts and passcodes to their children’s devices to have full access at any given moment.

3. Learn their technology. Stay one step ahead and take the time to research the various devices your kids use. You want to know more about their devices than they do.

4. Get social. Stay knowledgeable about the newest and latest social networks. You don’t have to create an account but it is important to understand how they work and if your kids are on them.

5. Reputation management. Make sure your kids are aware anything they post online does not have an expiration date.

McAfee’s Tweens, Teens & Technology Report 2014 was conducted through a survey administered across Indian online tweens aged 8-12 years old and teens aged 13-17 years old; comprising 711 male and 711 female respondents from Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad and Pune.

About Intel Security

McAfee is now part of Intel Security. With its Security Connected strategy, innovative approach to hardware-enhanced security, and unique Global Threat Intelligence, Intel Security is intensely focused on developing proactive, proven security solutions and services that protect systems, networks, and mobile devices for business and personal use around the world. Intel Security combines the experience and expertise of McAfee with the innovation and proven performance of Intel to make security an essential ingredient in every architecture and on every computing platform. Intel Security’s mission is to give everyone the confidence to live and work safely and securely in the digital world. www.intelsecurity.com.

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