Expanding the scope of cyberbullying beyond school walls

With the capillary diffusion of the internet into our societies come challenges and risks, including misbehave, harassment and cyberbullying. The latest data from 2018 to 2022 show a concerning increase in cyberbullying in Europe, with boys engaging in cyberbullying rising from 11% to 14% and girls’ incidence of engagement from 7% to 9%. Similarly, reports of being cyberbullied have escalated from 12% to 15% for boys and from 13% to 16% for girls. This affects all children as 97% of children in the EU used the internet daily. In 2024. As announced in President von der Leyen’s political guidelines 2024-2029, and as a response to this growing concern, the European Commission has now adopted an Action Plan against Cyberbullying. This initiative aims to give children, teachers, parents, carers and all educators the tools they need to report and combat cyberbullying. The Lifelong Learning Platform welcomes such a timely initiative, which prompts us to rethink the way we interact on the internet - with people at the centre.

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