Cyber Stalking & Bullying Seminar Warns About Online Safety

From Facebook to smart phones, Twitter to online gaming, bullying has gone cyber.  The Domestic Violence Response Team, with the assistance of the local police, are trying to put an end to it in Woodbridge.

Detective Robert Ptaszynski of the Woodbridge Police Department has held talks on the subject of cyber stalking and online bullying before, though usually at area middle schools.  Currently assigned to the juvenile bureau, Ptaszynski has seen this sort of new media bullying up close.  “Communication is number one,” he said early in his seminar Monday night at St. Andrew’s Church in Avenel.  “Communicate with your kids.  I cannot tell you how many jobs we get [involving] Facebook and MySpace.”

Starting with a pair of video news reports on two tragic tales involving cyber bullying, Ptaszynski then delves into more specific aspects of protecting one’s self and children online, discussing online bullying and violence, online predators, social networks, cell phones, and so on, explaining how to go about protecting information and reporting criminal offenses.

Many of Ptaszynski’s tips focus on immediacy and documentation.  “If something happens on Facebook, print it out,” he said, noting that many times the offending message will be deleted before being reported.  “That’s our evidence…At the minimum, it’s harassment.  Even if it’s a fake account, we can trace the IP address.”

Holding the seminar for the general public (rather than just school students) was the brain child of the Woodbridge Domestic Violence Response Team, said Captain Margaret Schmidt of the Woodbridge Police Department.

“People get harassed – online stalking, text messages, Facebook, and so on,” said Schmidt.  “The [Domestic Violence Response] team wanted information on how to help victims, to gather information.”

“It’s something the team has to be knowledgeable about,” said Linda Squillace, coordinator for the Domestic Violence Response Team.  “I wanted the team to be trained enough [on the subject of cyber bullying] so that they can help.

The DVRT, which has been around for over eighteen years, typically gets involved in domestic violence cases at a crisis intervention level.  “We’ll sit with the victim at police headquarters,” explained Squillace.  “Many times it’s the first time ever the victim can tell their story and have someone listen and show compassion,” explaining that many victims of domestic violence have never had a voice, having gone from abusive situations in childhood to abusive relationships as an adult.  Based on the situation, the DVRT will assist the victim by making them aware of resources available to the victim of domestic violence at a county level.

It is becoming more common, Squillace said, that the DVRT encounters victims of domestic violence that are also victims of cyber bullying, dealing with threatening messages online and over the phone.  “These crimes are more and more the crimes of the future,” said Squillace. 

The DVRT’s main focus is educating children.  “The younger we can educate the kids,” Squillace said, “the better chance we have of stopping [cyber bullying].”