Memes with consequences: police warn schoolchildren about fines and liability for cyberbullying
The Ukrainian Internet has seen an increase in offensive videos, photos, comments, and posts using images of schoolchildren, teachers, or other participants in the educational process. The National Police has drawn attention to the fact that content that teenagers often present as entertainment, jokes, or memes can violate the rights of other people and lead to legal liability.
Police warn of consequences for schoolchildren
Law enforcement officers reported that the distribution of humiliating materials on social networks can be classified as cyberbullying. Such actions include publishing offensive photos and videos, creating humiliating posts, spreading comments that affect a person’s dignity, or using someone else’s image in a derogatory context.
The police emphasize that the Internet is not a space without responsibility, since an anonymous account or a fictitious name does not protect the author from identification. If the materials humiliate a child, teacher, or other participant in the educational process, such actions may have consequences regardless of whether the authors called them a “joke”.
Fines are provided for cyberbullying, and in some cases administrative or criminal liability is possible. The police also draw attention to situations where the offender has not yet reached the age from which he can independently answer to the law.
In such a case, parents or guardians, who are obliged to respond to the behavior of minors in the digital environment, may be held responsible for the child’s actions. Law enforcement officers emphasize that participation in the creation or distribution of offensive content should not be perceived as a safe game, because the digital trail is stored and can become evidence in the case.
What to do for victims
If a child has been the target of offensive posts or videos, police advise immediately saving evidence: taking screenshots, recording the link, date of publication and profiles from which the content was distributed. Such materials will help confirm the fact of cyberbullying when contacting adults or law enforcement.
Victims are also advised to complain about offensive materials on the social network itself, as platforms have tools to block or remove such content. If the situation threatens the child’s safety, the humiliation continues or the materials are actively distributed, you should contact the police by calling 102 or 112.
What parents should explain
Law enforcement officers advise parents to talk to their children about their digital footprint, because each publication, comment or forwarded video can remain online much longer than the author expects. Such conversations should concern respect for other people’s photos, privacy, responsibility for insults and the consequences for those who are ridiculed online.
The police advise paying special attention to the privacy settings in children’s accounts. It is important that the child knows who to contact in the event of an online attack and is not left alone with the problem, because silence often allows the abusers to continue the pressure.
So, the National Police warns that offensive videos, photos, posts and comments involving schoolchildren or other participants in the educational process may have legal consequences. What starts as a joke in a chat or a post on a social network can become humiliating for the person affected, and for the author, a basis for a fine or other liability.
