24 Devastating Cyberbullying Statistics to Be Mindful Of

The internet has improved our lives in many ways, but it has also brought about unexpected changes. Cyberbullying statistics show that classroom bullying has now moved to the cyberworld. Sadly, it has turned many people’s lives into a nightmare.

Even though it takes place online, cyberbullying can have a tremendous negative impact on the victims, especially at a young age.

The following stats and facts will help you understand the seriousness of this problem and tell you more about the often horrifying consequences it can have. Let’s take a look.

Worrying Online Harassment Statistics

1. 11% of Americans have cyberstalkers.

(Pew Research Center)

This percentage, however, is not the only worrying thing.

What’s really disturbing is that the intensity of insults has increased. Cyberharassment has moved from simple name-calling to more severe forms, such as physical threats, sexual harassment, stalking, etc.

All of these categories have doubled in percentages in the last three years. For instance, 14% of cyberbullied people report receiving physical threats, and 11% have stalkers.

2. 36.5% of middle and high schoolers in the US have experienced cyberbullying at least once.

(Cyberbullying.org)

It’s clear that there we have a problem with cyberbullying in schools. Statistics show that 17.4% of kids say that they have been cyberbullied in the previous month.

As far as bullies are concerned, 14.8% of teens admitted to bullying others at least once. Teens are more likely to experience cyberbullying than traditional bullying.

The latter one is time-restricted, as teens spend a limited time in school or on the street. However, they are constantly online, making it much easier for them to become victims. Also, the harassment can last 24/7. 

3. A cyberbullying survey shows that 20% of tweens (9 to 12-year-olds) have experienced cyberbullying.

(Cyberbullying.org)

Cyberbullying affects children too, since many parents allow their kids to use smartphones and computers. They know how to surf the internet before they learn to tie their shoes. With limited useful knowledge of the world around them and undeveloped social skills, they become easy prey in the online world. 

4. Almost 25% of teens have seen mean and hurtful posts about them online.

(Cyberbullying Research Center)

Cyberbullying statistics reveal that mean comments are the most common type of cyberbullying. Online rumors are also widespread, with 22% of teenagers saying they’ve experienced them. Impersonation is another dangerous form of cyberbullying, and 10.1% of teenagers have been victims of it.

5. 44% of US adults experienced online harassment in 2020.

(Statista)

Teenagers aren’t the only ones who experience cyberbullying. Cyberbullying research showed that 37% of US adults were called offensive names online, while 28% were intentionally embarrassed by others.

Severe forms of online harassment are also common. For example, 15% of adults said they were threatened with physical violence, 12% were stalked or sexually harassed online, and 11% were repeatedly harassed by the same person.

6. 52% of LGBTQ teens have experienced cyberbullying.

(Cyberbullying Research Center)

Even though the US has made significant progress in promoting LGBTQ rights in recent years, online bullies still frequently target LGBTQ teens. Studies on cyberbullying show that 52% of LGBTQ teens nationwide have experienced online bullying, much more than 35% of non-LGBTQ teens who have been cyberbullied.

The authors note that male non-heterosexual students aged 12–17 (30%) are more likely to experience online bullying than non-heterosexual females (25.8%).

However, the most common targets are transgender students. 33.3% of them said they were bullied online in the past, while a staggering 66.7% said they had been cyberbullied within the previous 30 days.

Social Media Cyberbullying Statistics

7. Almost 10% of cyberbullied students experience harassment every day.

(Ditch the Label)

Furthermore, more than 20% of students say they are cyberbullied once or several times a week. What’s worrying, especially nowadays when we’re promoting diversity, is that 47% of victims say they are harassed because of their clothes and appearance.

8. 75% of all cyberbullying victims have experienced online harassment on Facebook.

(Statista)

Facebook is the most popular social network in the world, so it’s only natural that online harassment happens there. However, it’s also present on other social media platforms. When it comes to cyberbullying on social media, statistics show that 24% of users who reported cyberbullying were victimized on Twitter and Instagram.

9. Around 8% of people had their intimate photos and material shared without their consent.

(American Psychology Association)

Furthermore, the study has shown that women fall victim to “revenge porn” much more frequently than men. They are also much less likely to distribute non-consensual adult material. The research also shows that female victims have physical and psychological consequences more than male victims.

The Effects of Cyberbullying on Mental Health

10. Victims of cyberbullying are almost twice more likely to attempt suicide.

(Science Daily)

Cyberbullying victims under the age of 25 are twice more likely to attempt suicide or harm themselves than their peers who haven’t experienced online harassment. According to the authors, young males were more at risk of suicidal behavior.

The study also shows that perpetrators are at higher risk of having suicidal thoughts. It shows that the problem is complex and that cyberbullies could benefit from professional help.

11. 36% of young cyberbullying victims develop depression.

(Ditch the Label)

Furthermore, 44% of cyberbullying victims become anxious. These aren’t the only adverse effects of cyberbullying, as statistics also show that 12% of cyberbullying victims become antisocial after the incident.

Another 12% of young victims gradually develop an eating disorder, 8% turn to drugs and alcohol, while 3% engage in risky sexual behavior.

12. 47% of teens say cyberbullying has had a severe impact on their self-esteem.

(Ditch the Label)

According to the same survey, 26% of teens say that a cyberbullying incident has had an extreme impact on their self-esteem, while another 21% say the effect was significant. When it comes to the relation between cyberbullying and depression, statistics show that 37% of bullied students have experienced reduced optimism.

In 46% of the cases, online harassment has had a massive impact on teens’ future ambitions. The effects of bullying have also spilled over into their lives at home and school. More precisely, 51% of students say cyberbullying has negatively impacted their studies, while 46% say their home life has suffered, too.

13. Only 20% of US minors get treatment for their mental health problems.

(CDC)

Even though more than 20% of US minors experience mental health problems due to social trauma and cyberbullying, data reveals that only one in five of them receive the professional care they need to get better. This happens for a variety of reasons, including a lack of providers for a specific issue in a particular area and long waiting lists for some treatments. In addition, the lack of health insurance and high costs are other common reasons kids don’t receive professional care.

Other Cyberbullying Statistics

14. Cyberbullying is most prevalent among middle school students.

(CDC)

According to the CDC, 33% of US middle school students have reported being bullied online. Online harassment is almost as common in American high schools, where 30% of students have reported their own negative experiences.

Furthermore, 20% of combined school students and 5% of primary school students have also reported cyberbullying.

15. More than half of parents with children aged 11–18 say their kids have been bullied.

(Homeschooling Teen)

In recent years, we’ve seen a disturbing trend emerging in statistics for cyberbullying and traditional bullying among school-age children. Namely, one research found that 59.9% of parents with children aged 14–18 said their kids were bullied either online or on the school premises. 56.4% of parents with children aged 11–13 and 47.7% with kids aged 6–10 said the same thing.

16. Almost a fifth of all bullying happens on social media.

(Homeschooling Teen)

While most kids (82.8%) are bullied at school, it’s interesting to note that 19.2% also experience it on social media, as bullying facts reveal. Children are also commonly harassed on the school bus (32.5%) or at a location outside of school (17%).

As for online bullying, apart from social media, most of it occurs in text messages (11%), through online games (7.9%), and on various websites (6.8%). Additionally, 3.8% of parents said their kids were harassed via phone. These disturbing statistics urge parents to think about internet safety for their kids.

17. 20% of cyberbullied students skip school due to their experiences.

(UNICEF)

The latest UNICEF studies on cyberbullying say that 1 in 3 young people from 30 countries has experienced cyberbullying. Following this, 1 in 5 of them has decided to skip school due to harassment. 

When asked to share their thoughts about whose responsibility it is to stop cyberbullying, 32% pointed fingers at the government. On the other hand, 29% said internet companies, including social media platforms, should be responsible.

18. Cyberharassment statistics show that almost 25% of cyberbullied girls are victims of rumors.

(Cyberbullying Research Center)

In 2019, 38.7% of girls aged 12–17 admitted they were victims of cyberbullying. Gender doesn’t seem to be a determining factor, though, as 34.1% of boys also experienced cyberbullying. However, the way they were bullied was different.

Most girls (24.8%) said someone spread negative rumors about them online, while most boys claimed someone threatened to physically hurt them, either in a text message (13.1%) or on social media (12.8%).

Global Cyberbullying Stats 

19. 33.5% of British teens are bullied in mobile games.

(Mary Ann Liebert, Inc.)

Mobile games can get very competitive, and it doesn’t take much for sore losers to become cyberbullies. Research shows that 33.5% of British teens experience bullying while playing mobile games. These are mostly isolated incidents, as only 9% say they’ve been bullied repeatedly.

Although relatively low, these cyberbullying rates should still be taken seriously, as 39.4% of the bullied teens said the harassment they suffered made them feel very upset. Only 4.2% decided to report the incident to the gaming platform.

20. 26% of survey respondents in Russia believe that sexual orientation is the primary motive for cyberbullying.

(Statista)

Cyberbullying is very common in Russia, and more than a quarter of internet users believe sexual orientation is the key motive. Furthermore, 24% of people cite a person’s physical appearance or the things they write online.

Furthermore, 23% say that people behaving differently from others are common cyberbullying targets. A person’s financial status can also turn them into cyberbullying victims, statistics show. On that note, 21% of Russians say that people are ridiculed online for being either rich or poor.

21. Since the beginning of the pandemic, there has been a 70% spike in hate speech during youngsters’ online chats.

(L1ght)

Due to lockdowns and the general fear of contracting coronavirus, people spend more time indoors and online.

This, in turn, has increased their exposure to cyberbullying. Current online bullying facts and statistics show an increase of about 70% in hate speech between youngsters during online chats. Online gaming communities have also seen a significant rise (40%) in toxic communication.

22. Almost a third of sextortion victims have attempted or committed suicide.

(National Institute of Justice)

Sextortion is one of the most terrible types of cyberharassment with severe consequences. A blackmailer typically threatens to expose a victim’s intimate pictures online if the victim doesn’t agree to a series of demands. Usually, the victim is asked to provide sexual favors or money. 

To avoid being publicly shamed, the victim agrees with the blackmailer’s demands. Unfortunately, some victims even try to hurt themselves. FBI analyzed 43 sextortion cases, and its cyberbullying suicide stats show that 28% of victims attempted or committed suicide.

23. 50% of people check their former or current partner’s phone and search history, making it the most common form of cyberstalking.

(Statista)

Even though it seems benign, this is still a form of cyberstalking. Not-so-benign forms are much rarer but still very much real. For instance, 9% of people create fake profiles to keep an eye on their partners’ activities. Cyberstalking statistics also say that a whopping 10% use apps to monitor their former or current partners’ messages, phone calls, emails, etc.

24. 11% of cyberharassment victims experience intrusive or suicidal thoughts.

(Statista)

People react differently to cyberharassment. For instance, more than a third (36%) changed or stopped their online activities, while 25% started feeling anxious and depressed. More than 25% decided to act and contact social platforms, police, or attorneys. Unfortunately, some victims are severely traumatized. Regarding the relation between cyberbullying and suicide, statistics show that 11% of people start having suicidal thoughts.

Conclusion

With so many internet and social media users, cyberbullying is becoming more and more of a global problem. We are witnessing not only the rise in occurrence rates but also in the severity of cyberbullying. The number of sexual harassment, physical threats, and cyberstalking cases has spiked in the last few years.

Cyberbullying facts and statistics show that anyone who uses social media or posts on message boards is a potential victim. Therefore, it’s important to raise awareness about this issue and its adverse effects on people’s mental health and sense of security. 

If you experience cyberbullying, make sure to report it to the authorities or the online platform where it happened. That’s the best way to contribute to solving this problem once and for all.

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