<p>Snapchat, TikTok, and Meta are facing a $4.5-billion lawsuit from four Ontario school boards for allegedly hurting students, interfering with their learning, and harming their mental health, leaving educators to “manage the fallout,” according to a local news report.</p>

<p>All four cases were separately filed by the public boards of Toronto, Peel, Ottawa, and the Toronto Catholic Board and are represented by Neinstein LLP.&nbsp;</p>

<h2><strong>Why are the school boards suing Snapchat, TikTok, and Meta?</strong></h2>

<p>Social media apps are designed for compulsive use (and) have rewired the way children think, behave, and learn,&nbsp;say their statements of claim. The plaintiff's statement of claim also says that the social media companies have knowingly and negligently disrupted and fundamentally changed the school, learning, and teaching climate.</p>

<p>Colleen Russell-Rawlins, director of education at the Toronto District School Board, told the Toronto Star, "We're managing mental health challenges, loneliness and … discrimination — the slurs that we're seeing students use, some of that emanates from what's on social media."</p>

<p>"The defendants knew, or ought to have known, that their negligent conduct seriously and negatively impacts the student population by causing maladaptive brain development, compulsive use, disrupted sleep patterns, behavioural dysregulation, learning and attention impairment, and other serious issues that impact the school, learning, and teaching climate," the statements of claim reads.</p>

<h2><strong>Snapchat, TikTok, and Meta face lawsuits in the U.S</strong></h2>

<p>Over 500 school districts in the U.S. have launched similar cases now against these platforms. In January 2024, CEOs of Meta, TikTok, and X among other companies testified in a US court hearing. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin, who chairs the committee said, “They’re responsible for many of the dangers our children face online. Their design choices, their failures to adequately invest in trust and safety, their constant pursuit of engagement and profit over basic safety have all put our kids and grandkids at risk.”</p>

<p>On March 25, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed a bill that bans children under the age of 14 from social media platforms. The bill also requires children aged 14 and 15 to get parental consent for using social media platforms.</p>

<p><br />
&nbsp;</p>


Snapchat, TikTok, and Meta are facing a $4.5-billion lawsuit from four Ontario school boards for allegedly hurting students, interfering with their learning, and harming their mental health, leaving educators to “manage the fallout,” according to a local news report.

Snapchat, TikTok, and Meta are facing a $4.5-billion lawsuit from four Ontario school boards for allegedly hurting students, interfering with their learning, and harming their mental health, leaving educators to “manage the fallout,” according to a local news report. All four cases were separately filed by the public boards of Toronto, Peel, Ottawa, and the Toronto Catholic Board and are represented by Neinstein LLP. Why are the school boards suing Snapchat, TikTok, and Meta? Social media apps are designed for compulsive use (and) have rewired the way children think, behave, and learn, say their statements of claim. The plaintiff's statement of claim also says that the social media companies have knowingly and negligently disrupted and fundamentally changed the school, learning, and teaching climate. Colleen Russell-Rawlins, director of education at the Toronto District School Board, told the Toronto Star, "We're managing mental health challenges, loneliness and … discrimination — the slurs that we're seeing students use, some of that emanates from what's on social media." "The defendants knew, or ought to have known, that their negligent conduct seriously and negatively impacts the student population by causing maladaptive brain development, compulsive use, disrupted sleep patterns, behavioural dysregulation, learning and attention impairment, and other serious issues that impact the school, learning, and teaching climate," the statements of claim reads. Snapchat, TikTok, and Meta face lawsuits in the U.S Over 500 school districts in the U.S. have launched similar cases now against these platforms. In January 2024, CEOs of Meta, TikTok, and X among other companies testified in a US court hearing. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin, who chairs the committee said, “They’re responsible for many of the dangers our children face online. Their design choices, their failures to adequately invest in trust and safety, their constant pursuit of engagement and profit over basic safety have all put our kids and grandkids at risk.” On March 25, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed a bill that bans children under the age of 14 from social media platforms. The bill also requires children aged 14 and 15 to get parental consent for using social media platforms.

Canada school boards file $4.5 billion lawsuit against Snapchat, TikTok, Meta for 'deliberately' harming kids

Thirteen people went on trial in France accused of cyberbullying or death threats against a teenage girl who posted online comments critical of Islam.

France: 13 on trial over online abuse, death threats against teenager girl

Women in Spain marched on Wednesday (November 25) to highlight how lockdowns due to the pandemic had left many trapped with their abusers and exposed to greater danger. The marches in Madrid and Bilbao marked the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women.

Spanish women join global call for end to domestic violence

<p>`Dabangg` actor Sonakshi Sinha has joined hands with special IGP of the Maharashtra Police and other cyber experts for a new initiative 'Full Stop To Cyber Bullying'.<br />
<br />
The 33-year-old actor, who has been a victim of online bullying and trolling, took to Instagram to launch the new campaign where she has teamed up with Mission Josh and other cyber experts.The campaign, which is led by Siha and special IGP of Maharashtra Police, Pratap Dighavkar, would have five different live interactions with panelists and that would be streamed live on her social media accounts.</p>

<p><strong>Also read:</strong>&nbsp;<a href="http://13.235.153.162/entertainment/bhuj-the-pride-of-india-sonakshi-sinha-aces-gujarati-look-in-the-poster-314008" hreflang="en">'Bhuj The Pride of India': Sonakshi Sinha aces Gujarati look in the poster</a><br />
<br />
"Social media was made with the intention to spread love and positivity. Unfortunately, it has become a toxic place with the rampant rise of cyberbullying and mental harassment. I have been a victim of trolls and abuses myself," the 'Akira' actor said.</p>

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<p style=" margin:8px 0 0 0; padding:0 4px;"><a href="https://www.instagram.com/tv/CDDzrPHANx0/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" style=" color:#000; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:normal; line-height:17px; text-decoration:none; word-wrap:break-word;" target="_blank">It's time to stop the pandemic that’s plaguing our online world- Cyber Bullying and harassment. Full Stop To Cyber Bullying is a campaign by Mission Josh, where I have teamed up with Special IGP Mr Pratap Dighavkar with an aim to create awareness and educate people about online harassment, trolls, impact on mental health of victims who have faced trolling. Ab bas, NO more online harassment! @missionjoshofficial @cyberbaap @riteshb12 @vinavb @mansidhanak @studiounees #FullStopToCyberBullying</a></p>

<p style=" color:#c9c8cd; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; line-height:17px; margin-bottom:0; margin-top:8px; overflow:hidden; padding:8px 0 7px; text-align:center; text-overflow:ellipsis; white-space:nowrap;">A post shared by <a href="https://www.instagram.com/aslisona/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" style=" color:#c9c8cd; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:normal; line-height:17px;" target="_blank"> Sonakshi Sinha</a> (@aslisona) on <time datetime="2020-07-25T09:10:30+00:00" style=" font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; line-height:17px;">Jul 25, 2020 at 2:10am PDT</time></p>
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<p>"With Mission Josh, our campaign aims to bring awareness to cyberbullying, online trolling, cyber laws, and mental harassment. Jt CP of Maharashtra Police Dr Pratap Dighavkar and I will be talking to experts and show insights about the issues a lot of us have been facing and spread the message of cyber virus that is around us," she added.</p>

<p><strong>Also read:&nbsp;</strong><a href="http://13.235.153.162/entertainment/sonakshi-sinha-deactivates-twitter-account-to-stay-away-from-negativity-307300" hreflang="en">Sonakshi Sinha deactivates Twitter account to stay away from negativity</a><br />
<br />
The campaign was aimed at creating more awareness to make the Internet a safer place so that the trollers, harassers, bullies are aware of the consequences as well as legal actions that can be taken against them. The first interaction will air on July 26.&nbsp;</p>


`Dabangg` actor Sonakshi Sinha has joined hands with special IGP of the Maharashtra Police and other cyber experts for a new initiative 'Full Stop To Cyber Bullying'.

`Dabangg` actor Sonakshi Sinha has joined hands with special IGP of the Maharashtra Police and other cyber experts for a new initiative 'Full Stop To Cyber Bullying'. The 33-year-old actor, who has been a victim of online bullying and trolling, took to Instagram to launch the new campaign where she has teamed up with Mission Josh and other cyber experts.The campaign, which is led by Siha and special IGP of Maharashtra Police, Pratap Dighavkar, would have five different live interactions with panelists and that would be streamed live on her social media accounts. Also read: 'Bhuj The Pride of India': Sonakshi Sinha aces Gujarati look in the poster "Social media was made with the intention to spread love and positivity. Unfortunately, it has become a toxic place with the rampant rise of cyberbullying and mental harassment. I have been a victim of trolls and abuses myself," the 'Akira' actor said. View this post on Instagram It's time to stop the pandemic that’s plaguing our online world- Cyber Bullying and harassment. Full Stop To Cyber Bullying is a campaign by Mission Josh, where I have teamed up with Special IGP Mr Pratap Dighavkar with an aim to create awareness and educate people about online harassment, trolls, impact on mental health of victims who have faced trolling. Ab bas, NO more online harassment! @missionjoshofficial @cyberbaap @riteshb12 @vinavb @mansidhanak @studiounees #FullStopToCyberBullying A post shared by Sonakshi Sinha (@aslisona) on Jul 25, 2020 at 2:10am PDT × "With Mission Josh, our campaign aims to bring awareness to cyberbullying, online trolling, cyber laws, and mental harassment. Jt CP of Maharashtra Police Dr Pratap Dighavkar and I will be talking to experts and show insights about the issues a lot of us have been facing and spread the message of cyber virus that is around us," she added. Also read: Sonakshi Sinha deactivates Twitter account to stay away from negativity The campaign was aimed at creating more awareness to make the Internet a safer place so that the trollers, harassers, bullies are aware of the consequences as well as legal actions that can be taken against them. The first interaction will air on July 26.

Sonakshi Sinha launches campaign to end cyberbullying

<p>The British government said on Monday it will explore making <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/facebook-rights-groups-hit-out-at-singapores-fake-news-bill-207343">social media executives personally </a>liable for harmful content published on their platforms, in a raft of new online safety proposals.</p>

<p>The plans unveiled in a policy paper, which also include creating an independent regulator, aim to tackle all kinds of harmful content from encouraging violence and suicide to spreading disinformation and cyberbullying.</p>

<p>The issue has gained added urgency with <a href="Facebook chief Zuckerberg wants 'more active' govt role regulating internet">Facebook's failure to immediately</a> halt live streams of a March 15 attack by a self-avowed white supremacist on two mosques in New Zealand that killed 50 people.</p>

<p>Prime Minister Theresa May warned tech companies they had "not done enough" to protect users and that her government intended to put "a legal duty of care" on the firms "to keep people safe".</p>

<p>"For too long these companies have not done enough to protect users, especially children and young people, from harmful content," she said in a statement. "That is not good enough, and it is time to do things differently.</p>

<p>"Online companies must start taking responsibility for their platforms, and help restore public trust in this technology."&nbsp;</p>

<p>The new laws envisaged will apply to any company that allows users to share or discover user-generated content or interact with each other online.</p>

<p>That will include file hosting sites and chat forums as well as the better known social media platforms, messaging services and search engines.</p>

<p>Firms could face tough penalties for failing to meet the standards.</p>

<p>"We are consulting on powers to issue substantial fines, block access to sites and potentially to impose liability on individual members of senior management," the government said.</p>

<p>Under the proposals, a new regulator would have the power to force platforms and others to publish annual transparency reports.<br />
They would include the levels of harmful content disseminated on their sites and how they addressed the problem.</p>

<p>The regulator will also be able to issue codes of practice, which could compel companies to meet certain requirements, such as hiring fact-checkers, particularly during election periods.</p>

<p>"The era of self-regulation for online companies is over," Digital Secretary Jeremy Wright said, adding he wanted the sector to be "part of the solution".</p>

<p>"Those that fail to do this will face tough action," he vowed.</p>

<p>Proponents of tougher social media regulations welcomed the proposals.</p>

<p>"For too long social networks have failed to prioritise children's safety and left them exposed to grooming, abuse, and harmful content," said Peter Wanless, head of the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children.</p>

<p>"It's high time they were forced to act through this legally binding duty to protect children, backed up with hefty punishments if they fail to do so."&nbsp;</p>


The British government said on Monday it will explore making social media executives personally liable for harmful content published on their platforms, in a raft of new online safety proposals.

The British government said on Monday it will explore making social media executives personally liable for harmful content published on their platforms, in a raft of new online safety proposals. The plans unveiled in a policy paper, which also include creating an independent regulator, aim to tackle all kinds of harmful content from encouraging violence and suicide to spreading disinformation and cyberbullying. The issue has gained added urgency with Facebook's failure to immediately halt live streams of a March 15 attack by a self-avowed white supremacist on two mosques in New Zealand that killed 50 people. Prime Minister Theresa May warned tech companies they had "not done enough" to protect users and that her government intended to put "a legal duty of care" on the firms "to keep people safe". "For too long these companies have not done enough to protect users, especially children and young people, from harmful content," she said in a statement. "That is not good enough, and it is time to do things differently. "Online companies must start taking responsibility for their platforms, and help restore public trust in this technology." The new laws envisaged will apply to any company that allows users to share or discover user-generated content or interact with each other online. That will include file hosting sites and chat forums as well as the better known social media platforms, messaging services and search engines. Firms could face tough penalties for failing to meet the standards. "We are consulting on powers to issue substantial fines, block access to sites and potentially to impose liability on individual members of senior management," the government said. Under the proposals, a new regulator would have the power to force platforms and others to publish annual transparency reports. They would include the levels of harmful content disseminated on their sites and how they addressed the problem. The regulator will also be able to issue codes of practice, which could compel companies to meet certain requirements, such as hiring fact-checkers, particularly during election periods. "The era of self-regulation for online companies is over," Digital Secretary Jeremy Wright said, adding he wanted the sector to be "part of the solution". "Those that fail to do this will face tough action," he vowed. Proponents of tougher social media regulations welcomed the proposals. "For too long social networks have failed to prioritise children's safety and left them exposed to grooming, abuse, and harmful content," said Peter Wanless, head of the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children. "It's high time they were forced to act through this legally binding duty to protect children, backed up with hefty punishments if they fail to do so."

UK plans to hold social media giants liable for harmful content

<p>Melania Trump is hosting executives from major online and social media companies to discuss cyberbullying and internet safety, more than a year after saying that would be her issue as first lady.</p>

<p>The meeting today marks her first public event on the topic, a choice some observers have questioned given that her husband often berates people on Twitter.</p>

<p>Amazon, Snap, Facebook, Google and Twitter are among the companies that are expected to attend the meeting. The Internet Association said it will also be represented.</p>

<p>All the major technology companies have strict policies prohibiting harassment and other bullying behaviours on their services but primarily rely on users to report abuses and weed them out.</p>

<p>They try to clearly spell out the kinds of remarks and other posts that won&#39;t be tolerated in special sections such as one Facebook, the largest online social network, has set up. Instagram, a popular service among kids and young adults for sharing photos and videos, provides links to the US government&#39;s anti-bullying site and tips from a cyberbullying research centre on one of its help pages.</p>

<p>But the efforts so far have fallen short, leading to rampant abuses that even some of the companies acknowledge have driven away or tormented portions of their audience.</p>

<p>It got so bad on Twitter, which has 68 million US users, that the San Francisco company vowed last fall to crack down on hateful tweets. Among other things, Twitter adopted new policies aimed at protecting women who unknowingly or unwillingly had nude pictures of themselves distributed online a common bullying tactic.</p>

<p>Yik Yak, another messaging app once popular among high school and college students, shut down last year partly because schools banned it following complaints about bullying and harassment.</p>

<p>Online bullying takes many shapes, but some of the most common tactics include posting embarrassing or salacious photos, making demeaning or cruel remarks under a photo or in a general post about someone, and sharing screenshots of what at least one person thought was a private text.</p>

<p>Harassment is widespread and extends beyond teenagers. A Pew Research Center poll last year found 41 percent of US adults believed they had been harassed online.</p>

<p>The popularity of and volume of content on major social media sites present a huge challenge in policing what is being shared. Facebook, for instance, has 2.1 billion worldwide users who collectively share billions of posts on their pages daily. More than 300 hours of video is uploaded to Google&#39;s YouTube site every minute.</p>

<p>The companies are also constantly struggling to balance the desire to prevent harassment and other abuses and maintain a commitment to freedom of expression.</p>

<p>In some cases, they see harassment and still look the other way. For instance, some of President Trump&#39;s more vitriolic tweets have openly mocked and denigrated people, prompting calls for Twitter to shut down his account and ban him from its service. But Twitter has declined, maintaining the news value of the president&#39;s tweets eclipse complaints about him being a bully.</p>

<p>There is no federal law that applies to bullying. State laws vary, ranging from requiring public schools to have a bullying policy to requiring anonymous reporting systems, said Sameer Hinduja, co-director of the Cyberbullying Research Center and professor of criminology at Florida Atlantic University.</p>

<p>The federal government can best help by giving schools more tools and money to provide programs, Hinduja said.</p>

<p>Trump announced in a speech near the end of the 2016 presidential campaign that her priority as the first lady would be to fight cyberbullying. A native of Slovenia, she at the time lamented a US culture that she said had grown &quot;too mean and too rough.&quot; It was a curious speech for a woman whose husband uses Twitter to dismiss people as losers and taunt them with unflattering nicknames.</p>

<p>The mother of a 12-year-old son,&nbsp;first lady has made child well-being her focus in the White House, including an unexpected interest in how the opioid crisis is affecting youngsters.</p>

<p>She has visited hospitals and care centres to see the effects first hand and has embraced parents whose children died from drug overdoses. She accompanied the president to New Hampshire on Monday as he discussed a three-pronged effort to combat drug addiction, including applying the death penalty against those caught trafficking highly addictive substances.</p>

<p>Mrs Trump recently asked the spouses of US governors to help promote values such as encouragement, kindness, compassion and respect in children. She has also spoken about limiting the amount of time children spend online, and helping them understand the content they are exposed to.</p>


Amazon, Snap, Facebook, Google and Twitter are among the companies that are expected to attend the meeting

Melania Trump is hosting executives from major online and social media companies to discuss cyberbullying and internet safety, more than a year after saying that would be her issue as first lady. The meeting today marks her first public event on the topic, a choice some observers have questioned given that her husband often berates people on Twitter. Amazon, Snap, Facebook, Google and Twitter are among the companies that are expected to attend the meeting. The Internet Association said it will also be represented. All the major technology companies have strict policies prohibiting harassment and other bullying behaviours on their services but primarily rely on users to report abuses and weed them out. They try to clearly spell out the kinds of remarks and other posts that won't be tolerated in special sections such as one Facebook, the largest online social network, has set up. Instagram, a popular service among kids and young adults for sharing photos and videos, provides links to the US government's anti-bullying site and tips from a cyberbullying research centre on one of its help pages. But the efforts so far have fallen short, leading to rampant abuses that even some of the companies acknowledge have driven away or tormented portions of their audience. It got so bad on Twitter, which has 68 million US users, that the San Francisco company vowed last fall to crack down on hateful tweets. Among other things, Twitter adopted new policies aimed at protecting women who unknowingly or unwillingly had nude pictures of themselves distributed online a common bullying tactic. Yik Yak, another messaging app once popular among high school and college students, shut down last year partly because schools banned it following complaints about bullying and harassment. Online bullying takes many shapes, but some of the most common tactics include posting embarrassing or salacious photos, making demeaning or cruel remarks under a photo or in a general post about someone, and sharing screenshots of what at least one person thought was a private text. Harassment is widespread and extends beyond teenagers. A Pew Research Center poll last year found 41 percent of US adults believed they had been harassed online. The popularity of and volume of content on major social media sites present a huge challenge in policing what is being shared. Facebook, for instance, has 2.1 billion worldwide users who collectively share billions of posts on their pages daily. More than 300 hours of video is uploaded to Google's YouTube site every minute. The companies are also constantly struggling to balance the desire to prevent harassment and other abuses and maintain a commitment to freedom of expression. In some cases, they see harassment and still look the other way. For instance, some of President Trump's more vitriolic tweets have openly mocked and denigrated people, prompting calls for Twitter to shut down his account and ban him from its service. But Twitter has declined, maintaining the news value of the president's tweets eclipse complaints about him being a bully. There is no federal law that applies to bullying. State laws vary, ranging from requiring public schools to have a bullying policy to requiring anonymous reporting systems, said Sameer Hinduja, co-director of the Cyberbullying Research Center and professor of criminology at Florida Atlantic University. The federal government can best help by giving schools more tools and money to provide programs, Hinduja said. Trump announced in a speech near the end of the 2016 presidential campaign that her priority as the first lady would be to fight cyberbullying. A native of Slovenia, she at the time lamented a US culture that she said had grown "too mean and too rough." It was a curious speech for a woman whose husband uses Twitter to dismiss people as losers and taunt them with unflattering nicknames. The mother of a 12-year-old son, first lady has made child well-being her focus in the White House, including an unexpected interest in how the opioid crisis is affecting youngsters. She has visited hospitals and care centres to see the effects first hand and has embraced parents whose children died from drug overdoses. She accompanied the president to New Hampshire on Monday as he discussed a three-pronged effort to combat drug addiction, including applying the death penalty against those caught trafficking highly addictive substances. Mrs Trump recently asked the spouses of US governors to help promote values such as encouragement, kindness, compassion and respect in children. She has also spoken about limiting the amount of time children spend online, and helping them understand the content they are exposed to.

Melania Trump to hold first public event on cyberbullying

<p>Sarahah app, which has been trending all over the social media for a week now, derived its name from the Arabic word meaning &quot;honesty&quot;. The app was created by Saudi Arabian developer Zain al-Abidin Tawfiq a month before, but it became popular recently.</p>

<p>The &quot;honesty&quot; app has already earned great recognition in Egypt and Saudi Arabia, BBC reports.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The app enables people to leave a message on anyone&#39;s Saraha profile anonymously, also providing an option of tagging the sender&#39;s identity.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The person receiving the messages can either flag the messages, delete them, reply or favourite them. The messages are received in the person&#39;s inbox.&nbsp;</p>

<p>According to the creator, the constructive feedback received from anonymous sources will help the receiver in self-development.&nbsp;</p>

<p>However, it is quite certain that the app is encouraging cyberbullying by allowing people to respond under anonymity. &nbsp;Instances have shown people responding in an utter insensitive way without considering the consequences of the harsh messages.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Sarahah has become a useful platform for haters who do not hesitate in responding with severe comments.</p>

<p>The developers are planning to upgrade the app by enhancing the privacy setting of the app. The upgraded features will restrict the audience only to the people you share your profile with and also allowing only logged in profile to comment on your profile. The new feature will also let you block the sender of obscene messages.</p>

<p>Within a month Sarahah has surpassed the popularity of long going apps such as YouTube and Instagram by leading the App Store&#39;s number 1 spot.</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>


The app enables people to leave a message on anyone's Saraha profile anonymously, also providing an option of tagging the sender's identity.

Sarahah app, which has been trending all over the social media for a week now, derived its name from the Arabic word meaning "honesty". The app was created by Saudi Arabian developer Zain al-Abidin Tawfiq a month before, but it became popular recently. The "honesty" app has already earned great recognition in Egypt and Saudi Arabia, BBC reports. The app enables people to leave a message on anyone's Saraha profile anonymously, also providing an option of tagging the sender's identity. The person receiving the messages can either flag the messages, delete them, reply or favourite them. The messages are received in the person's inbox. According to the creator, the constructive feedback received from anonymous sources will help the receiver in self-development. However, it is quite certain that the app is encouraging cyberbullying by allowing people to respond under anonymity. Instances have shown people responding in an utter insensitive way without considering the consequences of the harsh messages. Sarahah has become a useful platform for haters who do not hesitate in responding with severe comments. The developers are planning to upgrade the app by enhancing the privacy setting of the app. The upgraded features will restrict the audience only to the people you share your profile with and also allowing only logged in profile to comment on your profile. The new feature will also let you block the sender of obscene messages. Within a month Sarahah has surpassed the popularity of long going apps such as YouTube and Instagram by leading the App Store's number 1 spot.

Sarahah: "Honesty" or "Cyberbullying" App?

<p>The Italian parliament on Wednesday passed a long-awaited law intended to tackle online bullying of children after several high-profile cases in which victims have committed suicide.</p>

<p>In a rare show of unity, the Chamber of Deputies passed the law with 432 votes in favour and just one abstention after a three-year passage through parliament.</p>

<p>&quot;We dedicate this law to Carolina Picchio and all the other victims of cyberbullying,&quot; Chamber speaker Laura Boldrini said after the vote.</p>

<p>Picchio, 14, threw herself from a third-floor window after cyber bullies circulated a sexually explicit video of her that they had filmed with their mobile telephones at a party.</p>

<p>The legislation provides a specific legal definition of cyberbullying for the first time in Italy, and requires all schools to educate pupils to use the Internet responsibly and to have a member of staff responsible for tackling the problem.</p>

<p>It makes it illegal to use the Internet to offend, slander, threaten or steal the identity of a minor, and allows the victim or their parent to demand that websites hosting abusive content remove it within 48 hours.</p>

<p>(Reuters)</p>


In a rare show of unity, the Chamber of Deputies passed the law with 432 votes in favour and just one abstention after a three-year passage through parliament

The Italian parliament on Wednesday passed a long-awaited law intended to tackle online bullying of children after several high-profile cases in which victims have committed suicide. In a rare show of unity, the Chamber of Deputies passed the law with 432 votes in favour and just one abstention after a three-year passage through parliament. "We dedicate this law to Carolina Picchio and all the other victims of cyberbullying," Chamber speaker Laura Boldrini said after the vote. Picchio, 14, threw herself from a third-floor window after cyber bullies circulated a sexually explicit video of her that they had filmed with their mobile telephones at a party. The legislation provides a specific legal definition of cyberbullying for the first time in Italy, and requires all schools to educate pupils to use the Internet responsibly and to have a member of staff responsible for tackling the problem. It makes it illegal to use the Internet to offend, slander, threaten or steal the identity of a minor, and allows the victim or their parent to demand that websites hosting abusive content remove it within 48 hours. (Reuters)

Italy passes law to fight cyberbullying

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