With the advent of the internet, bullying has taken on a new, more invasive form. Cyberbullying, in which a young person uses technology to intentionally intimidate or embarrass another person or group, is a worldwide issue. In a global survey polling 18,000 people in 24 countries, 77% stated that cyberbullying is a unique form of harassment and needs special attention. Unlike traditional bullying, cyberbullying can happen anywhere and can be anonymous, making it difficult to control.
In that same survey, Australia ranked as the worst place for cyberbullying, with 9 out of 10 parents reporting that their child or another member in their community had been a victim of cyberbullying.
Symantec strives to provide educational resources, online tools, and information to people all over the globe on topics such as online safety, cybercrime, and emerging threats. Cyberbullying is a growing concern and as part of our commitment to address this issue, we donated AUD$260,000 to non-profit, beyondblue, to help them tackle cyberbullying in Australia. Norton Hornets drivers Michael Caruso and James Moffatt presented the check to beyondblue at the Gold Coast 600 V8 Supercars even held on October 23rd. As part of showing support for the cause, Symantec also changed the branding on the outside of the race cars to that of the racers’ nicknames.
Watch the video above: Symantec and Norton Hornets race drivers support cyberbullying awareness. Symantec donates $260,000 and racing team drivers visit Aquinas College in Queensland with beyondblue Roadshow bus to bring attention to cyberbullying.
“Most children do not report cyberbullying incidents when they occur and parents have limited knowledge of how to help their children become resilient against cyberbullying. We want to educate children and parents about what they can do to reduce the impact of cyberbullying and we hope our donation to beyondblue will go some way to help break the connection between cyberbullying, depression and suicide,” said Symantec’s managing director and vice president for the Pacific region, Brenton Smith.
This donation is part of an ongoing partnership; Georgie Harman, CEO of beyondblue, said: “Symantec has this year again provided the largest corporate donation from the private sector to beyondblue. This money will help us tackle cyberbullying and is important because we are seeing an evidence based connection between cyberbullying and suicide. beyondblue wants to make Australian children more resilient to cyberbullying and to achieve this we have developed online content and a fact sheet for young people. These are available at www.youthbeyondblue.com and will help build young people’s resilience and reduce cyberbullying’s impact.”