Featured article by Mike Brown
If you haven’t been a victim of cyberbullying yet, chances are you will be at some point. According to research, more than 70 percent of school students have experienced online abuse. It isn’t just restricted to that age group either, with adults also facing harassment and threats on the internet.
It’s clear that something needs to be done about this troubling issue, which could easily spiral out of control. Artificial intelligence could be the answer, as it will be able to spot patterns and potentially stop cyberbullying before it occurs.
Cyberbullying is a Major Issue
Bullying has always been a problem for schools and workplaces, but the internet has opened a whole host of new ways for people to be mean to and harass others. This is known as cyberbullying, and it is one of the downsides to the incredible online world.
ExpressVPN notes that cyberbullying is an umbrella term that is used to refer to different types of online abuse and harassment. It can range from hurtful comments to more serious issues, such as stalking. Internet users need to know how to stay safe online, or they’re at risk of being on the receiving end of this despicable behavior.
The problem with cyberbullying is that there aren’t many efficient ways to eradicate it. Cyberbullies know they have a great level of anonymity online and that it is hard for anyone to punish them. Victims have the option to block and report people on various platforms, but this doesn’t get to the heart of the problem. It also doesn’t stop these victims from suffering the hurt that comes from abusive comments. As ExpressVPN highlights, though, there are some things that online users can do to protect their social media platforms such as only tag locations on posts once you’ve left the place and use different social media profiles for private and public-facing purposes.
How Can AI be Used to Combat Cyberbullying?
Artificial intelligence is set to revolutionize various things, and it is already starting to permeate the online world. It has been used on entertainment platforms like Spotify, where it puts listeners in touch with their ideal songs. Soon, it could help with more serious problems, such as cyberbullying.
An interesting article in Medium suggests that AI could bring an end to cyberbullying. For example, Instagram and Facebook have already started to use DeepText, which is an algorithm that identifies textual content with “near human” accuracy.
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If AI can be used to track down hurtful and mean comments, it could easily uncover cyber bullies and stop them before they cause harm. Applications like Guardio are already doing this, and they are programmed to alert parents if they recognize any worrying activity.
Tech Talks discusses how there are various ways for machine learning to combat cyberbullying. The promising thing is that AI traditionally improves its functions over time, and it will hopefully find its own solutions to stamping out cyberbullying.
Cyberbullying is an issue that needs addressing as soon as possible, as it is only likely to get worse as the internet grows in new ways. AI could be the answer to eradicating this once and for all.
