CYBERBULLYING IN TURKEY

With the development of technology, young people who grew up in environments where
phones, televisions and computers were available almost from childhood are taking a more
active role in the use of social media, but this also brings with it negative aspects.
Mostly, the active social media use of Generation Y and Z brings with it some negative
aspects, even though they can use electronic devices better than adults, and they are often
unaware of them and can ignore them. The photographs they take, the articles they publish,
and the communication they establish with other social media users on any social platform
puts them at great risk.

For example, when a photo we post on social media or any other social platform gets into
the hands of other people, the image can be manipulated and shared by adding things that
are not actually in the photo, causing comments that harm that person's identity, or even
forgery can be committed by stealing that person's identity in another way. And our young
people often ignore the consequences of this and post their posts where everyone can see
them, which causes that person to be threatened and insulted. In such incidents, the reason
why children generally do not share this situation with their families is that they are afraid of
them and therefore they can make the situation worse by trying to handle it themselves.
Likewise, families neglect their children's privacy without paying attention to the platforms
where they share their children's photos or the content of the photo. As BTK President Ömer
Fatih Sayan said ‘’Parents can have a domino effect when they think they are simply joking
around by sharing photos of their children without the latter's permission.’’
This doesn't have to be just a shared photo or text. Just having a social media account is
enough. Unfortunately, young children are unaware of the dangers of people pretending to
be someone they are not on social media and trying to steal their private information,
harassing them, initiating sexual conversations, and even arranging meetings in real life.
There are thousands of people who pretend to be someone they are not, open fake
accounts, pretend to be the other party's peer, and get their private information from their
photos. And this is not the only reason, there are also many scammers who ask for money in
return and threaten to spread the photos and information if they tell their families, and on
top of that, they also ask for money. According to the article published by the Ministry of
National Education, for these reasons, the Ministry of Education included this subject in the
curriculum to explain peer bullying and cyber bullying in schools. In fact, he made a very
logical decision by doing this, because bullying actually comes from our closest circle and the
people we call friends. It is very important that children who have not even reached puberty
and who act without even being aware of the consequences of their actions and who behave
in a way that the other party does not want with their words and actions, receive such
training and have knowledge about this subject. And in fact, one of the main reasons for peer
bullying is that this issue is not addressed within the family, or they are affected by the
situations experienced in the family and want to apply the things they see to others and
express their anger. Families are not aware that they are affecting their children so much,
they are not even aware of how bad they are affecting them, and the child they raise treats
their friends in this way and does not take responsibility, but harms the other person and
they are not aware of the consequences of this. Thus, it would be a very useful study if the
Ministry of Education actually provides information about cyberbullying and peer bullying in
schools and includes it in the curriculum.

As a result, in order to prevent peer bullying and cyberbullying, it would be more beneficial
to have activities outside the curriculum and even to inform families about this issue and to
start the real education within the family. Because if we educate children before they
introduce them to the outside world, we will take precautions against possible dangers and
children will act with awareness of this and pay attention. But at the end of the day, we
should not forget that they are children and they are curious, so no matter how conscious
they are, it will be beneficial for their families to pay attention to these issues and take care
of them.

REFERENCES

https://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/quarter-of-turkish-youths-exposed-to-cyber-bullying-
technology-authority-125045

https://www.aa.com.tr/tr/egitim/meb-siber-zorbalik-ve-akran-zorbaligini-mufredata-aldi/
3067620