Cyberbullying Response Guide: Steps to Stay Safe

Cyberbullying is bullying that happens through phones, games, apps and websites, and because it can follow a child home, it can feel impossible to escape. It includes nasty comments, rumours spread in group chats, threats, being left out on purpose, fake accounts and someone sharing your personal details or pictures. This guide is for young people being bullied and for the parents and carers supporting them. It sets out what to do in the first hour, how to keep evidence, how to get posts taken down, when to involve the school or the police, and where to get free, confidential help in the UK and the US. Childline puts it simply: bullying is never your fault.

Key takeaways

Do not reply, but do not delete. Replying usually makes it worse. Keep screenshots and a diary before you block or report.
Report it on the app and block. Childline says reporting it yourself makes removal more likely, even if others have reported too.
Tell a trusted adult. Schools have a responsibility to support pupils, and state schools in England must have a policy to prevent bullying.
Some bullying is a crime. Threats, hate crime, repeated harassment and sharing naked images should go to the police. Call 999 if anyone is in immediate danger.
Help is free and confidential. Children can call Childline on 0800 1111 at any time; adults can call the NSPCC Helpline on 0808 800 5000.

What cyberbullying looks like

Childline gives these examples of online bullying:

Posts and comments: nasty or mocking comments on photos, videos or profiles.
Group chats: rumours, jokes or chats set up to talk about someone, or being removed and left out on purpose.
Threats: messages saying someone will be hurt.
Trolling: deliberately posting things to upset someone.
Revealing personal details: sharing someone's address, phone number or private information. See the Doxxing Prevention Guide.
Online games: being targeted again and again by other players.

It is often linked to bullying that happens face to face at school, so the same people may be involved in both places.

Signs a child may be being bullied

The NSPCC says no single sign tells you for certain. Look for a pattern of changes such as:

being nervous, withdrawn or losing confidence
not wanting to go to school, or unexplained illness on school days
falling grades or missing homework
changes in eating or sleeping
asking for or taking money
being jumpy when a phone buzzes, or suddenly stopping using a device they loved

The first hour: what to do straight away

Check safety. If there is a threat of violence, self-harm or someone is in immediate danger, call 999.
Do not reply. Childline and StopBullying.gov both advise not responding to abusive messages. Do not forward them to others either.
Save the evidence. Take screenshots that show the message, the username, the date and the time. Note web addresses. Start a diary of what happened and when.
Report and block. Use the report button on the post, message or account, then block the person.
Talk to someone. A parent, teacher or Childline. If you are a parent, listen first and stay calm, so your child keeps telling you things.
Take a break. Childline suggests stepping away from your phone or turning off notifications for a while, even briefly.

Keeping good evidence

What to save	Why it helps
Screenshots showing username, date and time	Posts and accounts are often deleted once reported
The web address or profile link	Platforms and police need it to find the account
A dated diary of every incident	Shows a pattern, which matters for harassment and for schools
Names of anyone who saw it	Supports what you tell the school or police
Your report reference numbers	Lets you follow up with the platform and, later, with Ofcom

One important exception: never screenshot, save or forward a naked or sexual image of anyone under 18, even to show a teacher or the police. Describe it and where it is instead, and use the Report Remove service described below.

Getting posts taken down

Report to the app or website first. Cyberbullying usually breaks a platform's rules. StopBullying.gov advises using each platform's own reporting process and sharing your evidence with them.

Report Remove for images. If a sexual image or video of a young person under 18 has been shared online, Report Remove is a free, confidential UK service run by Childline and the Internet Watch Foundation (IWF). The young person creates a Childline account, makes a report, and the IWF reviews it and works to get the content removed. Age is checked using a service called Yoti, and updates appear in the Childline account.

Ofcom and the Online Safety Act. The Online Safety Act 2023 puts duties on online services to protect users, and Ofcom is the regulator. Ofcom is clear that "reporting directly to the service should be your first step". If you are still worried after that, you can complain to Ofcom. Be aware that Ofcom says it "cannot respond to or investigate individual complaints". Your complaint helps it decide whether a service is doing enough and whether to take action against it. Keep your report reference numbers so you can include them.

Working with the school

Cyberbullying between pupils often affects school life, so tell the school even if it happened at home or at weekends.

Know the rules: GOV.UK says state schools must have a behaviour policy that includes measures to prevent all forms of bullying among pupils, and must make it known to parents. Ask for a copy.
Bring your evidence: share your diary and screenshots (never images of children that are sexual).
Ask what happens next: who is responsible, what will be done, and when you will hear back.
Discrimination: schools must also follow anti-discrimination law, so bullying about race, disability, religion, sex or sexual orientation must be taken seriously.
If nothing changes: follow the school's complaints procedure.
Support from specialists: the Anti-Bullying Alliance has guidance for parents and schools, including information on policies, reporting and its Stop Speak Support materials.

In the US, StopBullying.gov notes that many states require schools to address cyberbullying in their anti-bullying policies, and some cover off-campus behaviour too.

When to involve the police

Most bullying is not a crime, but some is. Childline and GOV.UK say the police can get involved for:

Situation	Example of UK law that may apply
Threats of death or serious harm	Online Safety Act 2023, section 181 (threatening communications)
Sharing or threatening to share intimate images	Sexual Offences Act 2003, section 66B
Repeated harassment or intimidation, such as abusive calls, texts or emails	Harassment law; also Malicious Communications Act 1988, section 1
Bullying because of race, religion, disability, sexual orientation or gender identity	Hate crime
Assault or theft linked to the bullying	General criminal law

Call 999 in an emergency or 101 otherwise. If an adult is talking to a child online in a sexual way, or a child is being pressured into sending images, report it to CEOP, part of the National Crime Agency, through its Safety Centre. In the US, StopBullying.gov advises reporting threats of violence, sexual images, stalking and hate crimes to the police. This is a summary, not legal advice.

If someone demands money or more images, do not pay or send anything. Report it to the police, and to CEOP if a child is involved. If money is lost, also report to Report Fraud (England, Wales and Northern Ireland).

If your child is the one bullying

It is hard to hear, but it happens. The NSPCC advises explaining clearly that the behaviour is unacceptable, helping your child understand how it affects the other person, telling them what you will do next (such as contacting the school), and then keeping an eye on things and praising positive changes. Childline's advice to young people is to stop, delete the messages and posts, leave the group chats and apologise.

Prevention: settings and habits

Private accounts: set profiles to private and limit who can message or comment. See the Social Media Privacy Settings Guide.
Know the buttons: show your child where report, block, mute and restrict are in each app they use, before anything goes wrong.
Protect accounts: a unique password and 2-step verification stop others logging in as your child and posting in their name. See the Two-Factor Authentication for Everyone Guide.
Keep talking: the NSPCC stresses keeping lines of communication open and making sure your child knows who else they can turn to.
Be a good bystander: Childline asks young people not to like, share or comment on bullying posts, and to offer to help the person report it.

For wider family settings and parental controls, see Protecting Children Online: A Parent's Guide.

Where to get help

Childline (children and young people): 0800 1111, free, confidential, 24 hours a day, plus 1-2-1 online chat and Childline Cymru in Welsh.
NSPCC Helpline (adults): 0808 800 5000, 10am to 4pm Monday to Friday, with email support.
Report Remove: through Childline, for under 18s whose sexual images have been shared.
CEOP Safety Centre: for online sexual abuse or worrying contact from an adult.
Anti-Bullying Alliance: guidance for parents, carers and schools.
Ofcom: after reporting to the platform, if you think the service is not protecting users.
Police: 999 in an emergency, 101 otherwise.
United States: StopBullying.gov explains how to report to platforms, schools and police. Call 911 in an emergency.

Common failure patterns

Replying or retaliating. It escalates things and can get the victim into trouble too.
Deleting everything. Without screenshots and a diary, schools and police have little to act on.
Taking the phone away as punishment. Children may then stop telling you. Agree breaks together instead.
Saving sexual images of a child as "evidence". Never do this. Use Report Remove and tell the police where it is.
Going to Ofcom first. Ofcom does not handle individual cases. Report to the platform, then the school or police.
Not telling the school because it happened outside school. It usually involves classmates and affects school life.

Practitioner checklist

A simple step-by-step list for young people and parents.

Check nobody is in immediate danger. If they are, call 999.
Do not reply or forward the messages.
Screenshot each message with the username, date and time showing, and start a dated diary.
Report the post and the account on the app, then block.
Tell a trusted adult, or call Childline on 0800 1111.
Tell the school, share the evidence and ask for its anti-bullying policy.
Report threats, hate crime, harassment or image sharing to the police.
Use Report Remove if a sexual image of an under 18 has been shared.
If the platform does not act, tell Ofcom, quoting your report references.
Review privacy settings and turn on 2-step verification on every account.

Cyberbullying Response Guide: Plain-English Steps to Stay Safe