Will You Help Us With Our Cyberviolence Research Project?

The Status of Women Canada recognizes the importance of coming up with strategies to deal with Cyberviolence, particularly against young women and girls.

My company Sweet Spot Marketing is working in partnership with EPWIC - East Prince Women's Information Centre on a two year research project for Prince Edward Island. The goal is to address cyberviolence in PEI, to identify root causes and issues in our province, then work with stakeholders to develop strategies to prevent and eliminate cyberviolence in general, and more specifically against young women  and girls.

Our goal is to include a diverse community to represent different members and publics of our society. We're looking to include both genders, all cultures, race, languages, LGBTQ, etc. because different groups are cyber abused in different ways, and we really want to drill down to find out exactly what is taking place here in PEI so we can create, in partnership with various stakeholders including the public, strategies that will work for PEI.

At the moment, I have one question I would like to ask:

HOW WOULD YOU ANSWER THIS QUESTION .... 

In your opinion, what are the institutional barriers and other factors that limit the efforts of communities to address the issue of cyberviolence in general, and more specifically against young women and girls?

NOTE 1: Please comment below or send me a private message through the blog using the contact form to your right. All ideas/comments are good ideas/comments - there is no need to pass judgement against the opinions of others. Please be respectful and polite with your answers. Any derogatory, mean spirited comments will be deleted.

NOTE 2: Cybervioence is defined as any form of violence that brings harm to an individual deliberately using electronic means (e.g. cyberspace, social media, Internet, texting, etc.) including but not limited to internet luring, cyberstalking, cyberbullying, sexual bullying, sexual exploitation, harassment, defamation, character assassination, and trafficking.

NOTE 3: Thank you for your participation. Please feel free to involve your family and friends - to start having the conversation on how we can prevent and eliminate cyberviolence. Please feel free to share this post with your social networks, encouraging their participation.

Sincerely,
Nancy Beth Guptill &  Andy Lou Somers

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Nancy Beth is an Entrepreneur & Small Business Owner, Founder of Sweet Spot Marketing Canada and a Motivational Speaker for Women & Girl Leadership.

As an Internet and Digital Marketing veteran, Nancy Beth has vast experience in Internet Marketing, Social Media Marketing, Online Safety and Protecting Your Digital Footprint. Since 2010, Nancy Beth has been highly sought after to share her message on being a Digital Leader, using the Internet & Social Media for good, and how to safely navigate the Social Web. 

Keynote Speaker | Executive Coach | Training Consultant | Founder of Sweet Spot Marketing Canada (@sweetmarketing) |(@nbguptill) | Digital Leader | Women & Girl Leadership

To book Nancy Beth for your next event, or to discuss your training needs Visit: http://sweetspotmarketingacademy.ca/contact

How To Protect Your Shadow Footprint - Part 1

[This article written by Nancy Beth Guptill, originally appeared on http://sweetspotmarketingcanada.blogspot.ca in July 2013}

Huh? What are you talking about? What's a Shadow Footprint?

Good Question! With our Social Web, it is important to protect your Digital Shadow because what others say about you online can either boost your image and reputation, or completely destroy it. This holds true regardless of what people say, whether they are talking about you, your brand or your business in a professional or personal manner.

Your Shadow Footprint is defined by what others have to say about you online. This includes pictures, video's, audio recordings and text posts on blogs, social media and internet websites. On the Social Web, your image and reputation is the the sum of Google's Search results.

Most of us have heard the message “Protect Your Digital Footprint”. Your Digital Footprint is defined as anything you put out on the internet and social media sites about yourself. Your Shadow Footprint is content and information that others post and publish about you or your business online.

While you may take the action to be a good Digital Leader, others may not, and what others say and post about you or your company can really hurt your reputation.

Why is it important to protect our Digital & Shadow Footprints?

In our digital world, most people go to the internet as their primary research tool to look things up on Google, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and other search engines. Thinking about our Digital and Shadow Footprints, anything you, or others, put up about you on the internet is searchable and can have more meaning than anything you might include in a proposal, company overview, a resume or application paper.

Here's the thing, even if what is being said about you is not true, when people see things in print they tend to believe it, especially if the content is published on a credible site like an online article on a newspaper's website, or a podcast on a radio station's website.

The reality is our Digital & Shadow Footprints:

• Remain on the Internet Forever

• Are defined as the amount of content that is traceable back to a given individual, brand or company, whether the content is words, photographs, audio, or video … regardless of the publishing source

• Define our social identity, online brand and persona. As an internet user, we create our social identity in online communities, blogs and websites. It is defined through our actions, behaviors and interactions with others. Through our social identity people determine our online personality / persona which defines our online brand. Our online brand and persona is who we are as a person and how others perceive us online.

• Over time, our digital and shadow footprints combined, create our Social Identity

• Can be our new first impression.  By this I mean, people may meet you for the first time online through social media sites or reading about you on a blog or in the news. Think of it this way, you have probably met people online first through reading a news article, through your friends, or by joining an online community, before actually meeting them in-person offline. What they see about you online will create a first impression, and that impression will either be good or otherwise. I am sure many of you have accepted friend requests from people you never met, and did so because they had a positive online image. I am also sure many of you have declined friend requests or blocked people because of their online behavior and negative online image.

• Examples of Digital Footprint: photographs you uploaded to social sites, blog posts, shared video files, posts you wrote as status updates or comments you made on a friend's wall.

• Examples of Digital Shadow: photographs, video's and audio clips your friends or family members post about you as their update status, news articles published on the newspaper or radio station's website

As internet users, we are responsible for our own actions, and we need to be Digital Leaders. We can make a conscious decision to protect our Digital Footprint, as well as the Shadow Footprint of others by being a Digital Leader and a good Cybercitizen. We control what we post and we should not let technology betray us or others.

One of my all time favorite authors and speakers in Digital Marketing is Erik Qualman [@equalman]. When we interact through social media and email, he calls me #OhCanada and I just love it! Erik is the author of Socialnomics and Digital Leader, and he is a strong proponent for Digital Leadership. Two must read books for ANY user of the social web is Socialnomics and Digital Leader by Erik. I strongly encourage you to read both of his books as they are truly insightful.

While we can control our Digital Footprint we have no control over our Shadow Footprint. However, we can … and MUST ... take measures to protect it.

Next week, I will share part two of this two-part blog series. In part two, I will share strategies and tactics on how to actually protect your Shadow Footprint. In the meantime, if you have any questions on part one, please post questions on this blog, or you can post them to my Facebook Page http://www.facebook.com/sweetmarketing

In closing this post, take a moment to watch “A Tale of Two Footprints” by Mr. Sheehy  This video reinforces the content in this post.

                       

A Tale of Two Footprints from Mr. Sheehy on Vimeo.

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Nancy Beth is an Entrepreneur & Small Business Owner, Founder of Sweet Spot Marketing Canada and a Motivational Speaker for Women & Girl Leadership.

• As an Internet and Digital Marketing veteran, Nancy Beth has vast experience in Internet Marketing, Social Media Marketing, Online Safety and Protecting Your Digital Footprint.  Since 2010, Nancy Beth has been highly sought after to share her message on being a Digital Leader, using the Internet & Social Media for good, and how to safely navigate the Social Web. 

  
  

  Keynote Speaker | Executive Coach | Training Consultant | Founder of  Sweet Spot Marketing Canada(@sweetmarketing) |(@nbguptill) | Digital Leader |

   Women & Girl Leadership

Facebook Safety Tips for Teens

PLEASE NOTE:
  1. Please allow content to load.
  2. Original Source is USA Today website.
  3. There is a one minute advertisement prior to the main story

Protecting Our Children Online

Thank you to Queen Charlotte, Stone Park, and East Wiltshire for hosting our parent session on "Protecting Our Children Online".

Click here to download a copy of the Parent Presentation

There are two more applications and platforms I would like to make you aware of, that are known to attract predators and pedophiles:

    1) Chatroulette: Online Video Chat site 

2) Kick: An iPod App

A few parents came up to me after the presentation to share some sexually explicit stories their elementary school age children (age 9) were involved in. A child of 9 would not know sending a picture of themselves to a stranger is dangerous, unless they are aware of the various Internet & Social Media perils.

I posted a question on Facebook last evening (June 5) asking if anyone was aware of these two apps/platforms, and I received instant replies from some parents whose children came face to face with pedophiles on these platforms.  They are very dangerous.  

Further, there is a lot of pornography and foul language used on these platforms that children and youth are being exposed to, way too early in life.

As we learned last evening, children who are exposed to pornography, whether it is hardcore or soft porn, are at a higher risk of being involved with sex and abuse crimes.

Please block these apps and platforms, along with Omegle.

If you have any questions, or would like to comment and provide feedback on the presentation, please post a comment on my facebook page, or send me a tweet:

Facebook: http:/www.facebook.com/nguptill

Twitter: @nbguptill

10 THINGS YOU MUST DO IF YOUR CHILD IS BEING CYBER BULLIED

If your child is being cyber bullied, remember this, he/she is in control. Here are 10 steps to deal with the matter:

(1) GET PROOF & EVIDENCE: Use parental control software thathas the ability to capture online conversations and take pictures of the computer screen, or use screen capture software such as SnagIt or Jing

(2) REPORT THE BULLY: Facebook has the ability for you and your child to report the person and their comments. Visit: https://www.facebook.com/help/420576171311103/ Other social media sites have similar capabilities - search their help section or do a Google search to learn how to report 

(3) TELL THE OTHER PARENT: Inform the other parents that their child has committed the crime of cyber bullying. Send them the evidence, ask them to get their child to delete the posts. Inform them if the content is not taken down, or if anything else appears you will file a report with the police for cyber bullying.

(4) APPROACH THE BULLY: Depending on the age of the child, if in junior high or older, send them a message saying they are committing the act of cyber bullying and to immediately remove all posts and refrain from doing it in the future otherwise you will report them to the police for cyber bullying.

(5) APPROACH OTHER PEOPLE: If the posts were on someone else's wall or on a picture that was posted, send a message to that person asking for the negative posts to be removed. Advise them the act of cyber bullying was committed and they have a responsibility to protect others online and to shut down cyber bullying if it's happening on their account even if it's someone else that is instigating it.

(6) BLOCK THE BULLY: This is the simple solution - block the bully from your child's friend list. This way you shut-down the bully and take back your child's power

(7) TALK TO THE SCHOOL & EXTRA CURRICULAR PROGRAMS: Make sure the cyber bullying is not spilling over into other areas of your child's life. If they are being cyber bullied, it is likely they are being bullied somewhere else. Take the evidence to the school and to the program coordinator of any extra-curricular programs your child and the bully attends - ask them to protect your child while in their care, and to report any incidents immediately.

(8) INSTILL CONFIDENCE IN YOUR CHILD: One of the most important things you can do is tell your child to not take it personally. As much as it hurts, educate them that bullies usually have personal problems that leads them to hurt others and if your child were to watch the bully, he/she is bullying others to. Give lots of love and positive affirmations over your child's life and have them understand there is nothing wrong with them. Healthy minded people respect others, insecure troubled people bully others.

(9) POSITIVE EXPERIENCES & RELATIONSHIPS: Spend time with your child doing fun, positive activities. Give them experiences that bring them joy and confidence. Get them involved with activities they are good in and positively encourage them to work hard and do their best. Surround your family with positive people, where there is mutual respect and appreciation in the relationships. The more you build up your child's life with positive influences, the better they will be able to deal with unpleasant experiences in their life.

(10) REPORT & SEEK HELP: If the cyber bullying continues, report the bully to the police and school authorities. Meanwhile, your child's mental health is of utmost importance. If the cyber bullying is emotionally harming your child to the point it is crippling him/her, seek professional help from a family councilor.

One last point:  We as adults need to set the tone and behavior of appropriate online conduct. We are the role models so we must demonstrate being a good cyber friend and using the internet and social media for good. This means refrain from online complaining against others, including brands, companies and individuals. There is nothing wrong with sharing your opinion, just do it in a respectful manner.

True Story on Bullying & Cyber Bullying

Today I had the pleasure of attending our Area Toastmasters competition. I was a Counter and Sergeants-at-Arms, and enjoyed sitting back to watch my fellow Toastmasters compete.  It was delightful.

One speech really hit home with me ... it actually brought me to tears. Perhaps it's due to me  working so closely with different schools, families, children and youth, community groups and organizations on the very matter he spoke about so I understand the personal tragedy individuals, families and administration face.

My fellow Toastmaster gave a very moving speech on the impacts of bullying and cyber bullying in story telling format.  He recounted the real life events of the death of his nephew, who took his own life, as a result of severe bullying and cyber bullying.  

This handsome, talented, intelligent, creative young man was just two weeks away from graduating from high school ... a young man with a promising future. It broke my heart to hear his story. I fought to hold back the tears, however, the story was so moving I eventually felt the sting of tears in my eyes that spilled out and rolled down my face.

As my fellow Toastmaster shared his story, I thought of the many parents, children, youth and school administrators I have spoken with over the years, but more so in recent years as a result of the work I am doing in Cyber Safety, Internet Safety and Digital Footprints. In all cases, it boils down to one thing .... Bullying hurts ... Cyber Bullying makes it ten times worse because of how public the bashing and humiliation becomes and there is no escape.

Recently, I gave a Cyber Safety presentation to PEI Service Providers.  The participants included Executive Directors and front line staff working in crises centres, women centres, people with disabilities.  When speaking about Cyber Bullying, it was interesting to hear the workshop participants share they see a resounding number of adults, more so than children and youth, committing the acts of Cyber Bullying and Internet Defamation.  It was also interesting, yet not surprising, to learn some organizations and specific individuals working within them, are Cyber Bullied by outspoken individuals and organizations. When asked the nature of attack, whether it is personal or professional, they said it was more professional, stating people reacting to the work they do on social issues, social justice and serving the needs of the public.

This leads to me sharing a key message with all adult audiences:  Yes, bullying and cyber bullying are prevalent amongst children and youth ... however ... take a good look .... how are you, your friends and social media connections setting the tone of behavior online?

Do you ever bash brands, politicians, organizations or even individuals for that matter with derogatory comments?  Do you re-post pictures and links to articles that are malicious and condescending in nature?  Do you tweet or post negative comments, then ask others to contribute?  Once you tweeted or posted something, have you ever asked yourself this question: `If my comments were made about me by another person or entity, would I be embarrassed, hurt or humiliated if  someone talked about me in this manner?'

As adults, we need to set the tone of behavior and be positive role models  on using the Internet and Social Media for good.  There is nothing wrong with advocating for change or speaking up on matters that are important ... we just have to do it in a respectful manner, otherwise, we commit the act of cyber bullying and internet defamation ... others will model that behavior including children and youth.

Change starts with each of us on an individual basis.  If we want respect we must give it.  If we want children and youth to act accordingly online, then we as adults, must do the same.  Many people talk the talk ... but fail to walk the talk.

Be a Digital Leader, Be a Good Role Model, Demonstrate Appropriate Use of Social Media and the Internet.

Going back to my fellow Toastmaster, while his story was tragic with a very devastating outcome, I was blessed by his message and hold him in very high regard to have the courage and confidence to advocate for change.  More needs to be done in addressing the very real issues children, youth and adults face with bullying and cyber bullying.  I stand along side of him in raising the awareness and championing his cause. 



About The Author: Nancy Beth Guptill is an Entrepreneur & Small Business Owner, Founder of Sweet Spot Marketing Canada and a Motivational Speaker for Women & Girl Leadership. As an Internet and Digital Marketing veteran, Nancy Beth has vast experience in Online Internet Safety and Protecting Your Digital Footprint.

Since 2010, Nancy Beth has been highly sought after to share her message on being a Digital Leader, using the Internet & Social Media for good, and how to safely navigate the Social Web.