Cyber Bullying Stories: The Amanda Todd Case (1996

2012)
The Story

The story of Amanda Todd began just like all cyber bullying stories begin.
Amanda Todd was born in 1996 in British Columbia, Canada, and was a happy
easy going person, until she was introduced to an anonymous person on
Facebook who flattered her so much to the point of convincing her to flash her
topless body to him. A year later, the same person or another anonymous person
sent her the picture and it went viral, creating a mass of bullying and teasing to
the point that she had to change schools several times. The distribution of
Amanda Todd naked private pictures, once she sent in con fidence, was not
itself judged or condemned; only she was. Her reputation was ruined, she had
no friends, she was beaten up by some classmates, she tried drinking bleach but
was saved at the last minute. Months later, Amanda Todd took her own life.

After her death, her Youtube video went viral to the point of reaching more than
17 million views. People were shocked when they learned about the Amanda
Todd Story and reached out to her family. The authorities began a mass inquiry
especially with the inspiration and the help of Amandas bullying video. To the
shock of everyone, the hate campaign continued online after Amanda Todd took
her own life, people ridiculed her suicide and made fun of the entire story, they
even said she deserved what had happened to her. How did Amanda Todd die
didnt seem to make a difference to the bullies. The cyber bullying continued
despite appeals for people to see the real tragedy behind Amandas death. The
famous Anonymous hacking group even went on a massive search to defend
Amanda and find the person who tormented and blackmailed her online but the
authorities did not see him as a person of interest in the case.

The truth remains that people who bullied and tormented Amanda still walk the
streets everyday thinking their hate and actions mean nothing while in fact
every comment they have made about her while she was alive or after her death,
brings so much pain to the people who loved her. Remember that words do hurt
and scar, sometimes beyond repair.
Suspect Found!

According to the BBC, A 35-year-old man was officially charged in April

2014 in the Netherlands in connection with Amanda Todds suicide.
According to the Canadian police, the unidentified suspect was charged with
extortion, Internet luring, criminal harassment and child pornography,
Canadian police say. The Police also mentioned the suspect is involved in
other abuse cases and not just the Amanda story.
The Dutch newspaper Omroep Brabant reports materials seized at the
suspects home put him in suspicion of other cases of online abuse involving
the Netherlands, the UK and the US.
Today marks a major milestone in our investigation, said Inspector Paulette
Friel of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. A suspect has been identified,
he has been arrested and he has been charged.
The suspicions against the man are that he approached underage girls via the
Internet and then seduced them into performing sexual acts in front of a
webcam, Dutch prosecutors said in a statement, quoted by AP.
Suspected targets include men who were allegedly convinced the man was an
underage boy and were persuaded into performing sexual acts on camera.
It took police almost two years to find only one suspect in the Amanda Todd
cyber bullying case.

It is to be remembered, that there are thousands of child predators in online

chat rooms who are taking advantage of sweet young boys and girls
everyday. This is why Amanda Todds story should serve as a wake up call
for children everywhere.

Carol Todd, Amandas Mother says that the rise in cyber bullying is
happening due to the rise in social media platforms that allow the user to
remain anonymous which makes the bully anonymous.
Technology has ramped it up so much that there are no boundaries, Todd
said. Its so faceless and they are free to say whatever, theyre free to say
and do whatever without thinking about it. It is worth noting here that the
origin of Amandas story started when, according to Amandas viral
Youtube video, she had been coerced online in 2010 to flash her breasts, and
the resulting image was used against her and circulated on the Web and at
school.
The picture was put out there on the Internet and then all of a sudden, her
peers started harassing her, both face-to-face bullying and online, so she had
to endure that kind of abuse, Todd said to Foxnews. She was afraid to go to
school, people were looking at her, she developed more depression, social
anxiety. She was afraid people were watching her all the time.
It is worth mentioning that in Canada, the criminal codes general harassment
provision includes the prosecution of cyber bullying. Many U.S. States have
also incorporated laws that specifically target cyber bullying and harassment.
With the cyber bullying Amanda Todd and other victims in Canada endured,
the Canadian parliament suggested Bill C-13. This bill was designed to help
prevent children from online bullying. However, it did not pass due to several
key issues. First of all, the bill would have completely overhauled the entire
system, allowing the police and other government agencies to no longer need
warrants from a federal or state judge in order to monitor the movements and
actions of a person online. Opponents of the bill pointed out it really did not
keep children safe, but instead would just give the police additional powers
to monitor Internet usage. With the current spying issues with the United
States and other countries around the world, there is a large distrust for the
amount of monitoring the government is allowed to do on individuals who
use the Internet. This is the major reason Bill C13 did not pass.
How did Amanda Todd die? Was it entirely her own doing or was she
encouraged to and provoked into ending her own life. Theres no question
that suicide is never the answer. But someone so young and so hurt cannot be
left alone to deal with the hate and abuse Amanda had to live with every day.
And the fact that Amanda Todd naked pictures resurfaced an entire year after
she sent them is only a morbid reminder that what is given to the Internet can
not be returned. Itll remain there forever. Regardless, neither Amanda, nor
anyone for that matter, deserves merciless persecution for one misguided
action done in a young impressionable phase.