A parent's guide: how to avoid cyber-bullying on Xbox Live

OXM UK: "Cyberbullying pushed its way into the UK news agenda this week, following the suicide of teenager Hannah Smith after she was bullied by a number of users on Ask.fm. It's not a new problem or even one that (as far as we're aware) has intensified recently, but it is one that's temporarily captured the roving eye of the mainstream moralising media. This article just tells you how to avoid it, what to do if you encounter it, how to report it, and how to help out."

[TripC50]

Does anybody think if gamer tags were replaced with actual names and ages, people would act more maturely online? Or would that cause more problems?....probably more problems but I would be okay with it.

[porkChop]

Little kids would be too chicken-shit to be racist, obnoxious, etc, online. I think it would be a good thing. But it would never happen because there would likely be mass outcry from the cyber-bullies that would ultimately be affected.

[FanboyCrusher]

You know what would solve that? ESRB backing up age ratings with the account needing to be that age, and if the player is suspected of being too young it's investigated. Unfortunately everyone has to lose when a few bad apples mess up the batch, if a few people can't play M rated games anymore so be it.

Against what Fox or any other news outlet would say about games making people violent, murderous, and desensitized it just isn't true, but it's not secret that online games are a bad playground for children where all they learn to do is act like little pricks.

If that sounds too harsh of a punishment what if players under the games recommended age couldn't voice, or text chat with players above the age? That would at least separate the children stopping any older idiots from being bad influences.

[paul-p1988]

The main issue is parents buying the games for the kids if they are ridiculously underage. When my son is 15 i'd might let him watch an 18 film or two whilst i watch with him (supervised parenting!), but i'm not gonna buy him Call of Duty when he is 8 and just leave him to play it by himself (which, with my only experience of xbox live it sounded like all the kids were between 8-13 in the game...)

[Sam Fisher]

@fanboy crusher

But wouldnt that go against freedom of purchase?, you buy 60$ game and cant play it and cant get a full refund? That would suck

[sovietsoldier]

iv found most cod players to be bully's, and half of those where adults. best you can do is mute them and move on.

also the whole cyber bullying thing is over blown and a way of trying to make everyone be nice to each other which is not ever going to work.

[sobotz]

It would be not possible, there are so many people with the same name. There will be John(1), John(2), etc.

By the way, it happened on PS4 actress. I still remembered they downgraded the Sarah Greene :(

[iamnsuperman]

Urm It would solve the problem to a point. Facebook shows this really. Arguably there is less because your name is attached to it but for some idiotic reason people still bully/saying obscene things when there name is right there. It would cut it down but not totally get rid of it.

I personally think implementing that is too difficult. Does everyone remember the youtube change. They wanted our real names and it got a big backlash because of it.

[r1sh12]

if there are younger kids, parents can use the privacy settings to make it harder to hear abuse..
i.e - only chat with friends from the friends list etc.

Those safeguards do a decent job i think.

Using real names etc - MS already hand data over to the NSA, it makes it easier to find out who is who from the data sent.

[Cam977]

Just stay away from COD & MinnesotaBurns

[colt-of-tipton]

Feel sorry for the family and friends of Hannah Smith RIP, cant imagine how low you must feel if your thinking of taking your own life. Don't get why trolls and the like get a kick out of abusing people online just simple minded idiots .

[king_george]

I agree. Its a shame people feel the need to bully even while theyre just trying to enjoy a videogame

[iceman06]

Unfortunately, some of the cruelest things that you will ever hear come out of the mouths of children. Even more unfortunate is that you hear those things when you yourself are a child and less equipped to handle these things being said. The bullying used to stop at school with a few people. Now, it's blasted all over social media outlets, like the kids that posted the sexual assault of the young girl in Canada. All in all, each and every one of those kids are going to have to deal with this for the rest of their lives in one way or another. Even worse, when they grow up and really come to terms with what they have done, that guilt is going to eat away at whatever remainder of a soul they still have.

[itsRehabTime]

heres a good way to stop it, turn off the xbox.

[ElementX]

How about turn off the PS or PC? It's not as though bullying is an Xbox exclusive

[GreenRanger]

Just keep your children away from online multiplayer. It's home to some of the biggest scum you'll ever come across.

[finite]

don't let them online?

[Jovanian]

solution: don't let kids play games online that they aren't old enough to play

if you do, however: don't let them speak on the microphone

[MadMen]

Dumb article

Solution - no internet on their gaming device.

SOLVED

[SynestheticRoar]

Stay away from C.O.D. A 12 year old will say he's having sex with your moms, and he's your daddy.