How to Deal With Bullying on Facebook

Use the "Privacy Settings" menu to hide your profile information from nonfriends.

Bullying is an age old problem, and with the advent of social networking sites like Facebook bullies are able to harass their targets any time of the day. If you find yourself being bullied by someone on Facebook, ignore the comments, but make sure to report them to Facebook so the bully can be addressed by site administrators. Do not keep someone on your friend list who continues to bother you.

Instructions

1. Prevent bullying by only adding trusted friends to your friend list. Because only friends are allowed to write on your wall or initiate a chat conversation, keeping a bully off your friend list eliminates the number of ways she can contact you.

2. Report abusive posts left about you on any profile by clicking on the "x" in the top corner of the post and selecting "Report Post or Spam"--provide a reason for your report when prompted. Report a private message as abusive by clicking the "Actions" icon and selecting "Report/Block User" from the menu to create a report and send it to Facebook.

3. Block a user completely if she continues to find ways to bully you on Facebook. Go to the user's profile, and click on the "Report/Block This Person" link in the left-column of her profile screen. Click the circle next to "This person is bullying or harassing me," then click "Continue" to send the report. Note that once you block a user, you will not see her posts or other activity anywhere on the site.

4. Refrain from engaging with a bully on the site. Facebook advises that bullies tend to exhibit the behavior they do in order to solicit a reaction from you--if you give them the reaction they desire by responding, they may be more likely to continue bullying you. You are better served to block a user and encourage your friends to report any future inappropriate comments left about you around the site.

References

• Facebook: What Can I Do to Prevent or Address Cyberbullying?