Cyberbullying: The Relationship to Cybersecurity, AI, and Big Data

Cyberbullying is an expanding and evolving attack on the social fabric of the community. It occurs across disciplines with all too much regularity, and can lead to physical violence and even death. In some extreme cases, harm caused is so pervasive that the victimized individual commits suicide to escape the anguish. In other instances, hyped up attackers move from the cyber realm to the 3D space. Cases that do not approach this level of severity and have better outcomes are still painful, can be emotionally crippling, and lead to years, if not a life-time of despair. With the ubiquitous explosion of the Internet in recent decades, cyberbullying is a relatively new form of abuse. The long-term effects are currently being assessed. Research is ongoing to examine and to identify who is behind the attacks and their victims. In recent years, news services have reported attacks on students, medical professionals, academics, athletes, immigrants, and politicians. We will examine research that focuses on these groups. However, they represent only a few of the people targeted by cyberbullies. Victims span all ages, genders, and nationalities with all subjected to devastating abuse and harassment. This paper exams the traits of perpetrators, risks and reasons for being bullied, detection methods, prevention procedures, and coping strategies after being bullied. Recommendations for going forward to mitigate the problem of cyberbullying are offered.