New technology such as mobile phones and the internet have changed the world - it is now quick and easy to communicate with lots of other people without ever meeting them. There is a down side to these advances - new and horrible forms of bullying are becoming very common.

On this page we will look at two different forms of bullying and offer tips and guidance as to how to stay safe.

• Happy slapping
• Cyber bullying

Happy slapping

In December 2005 a 15 year old girl was found guilty of manslaughter - she encouraged a gang of friends to violently attack a man in London whilst she filmed it on her mobile phone. The man died and the girl is now serving a long prison sentence.

Happy slapping is the wrong description for this type of bullying and assault as there is nothing happy about it.

Anyone attacked in a happy slap assault should tell their parents or the police. There are a number of offences involved:

• The first is assault
• The second is harassment, if the pictures are passed around and uploaded onto the internet

So how can you stop it?

• Tell someone you trust what is happening - your mum, dad, a teacher or a friend. Even if you think that this could make the problem worse, it's essential that someone knows what is happening.
• Being an onlooker can be as bad as taking part
• Listen to friends who are being bullied. If your friends are bullying others, talk to them about their behaviour.
• Don't join in with people who bully.
• Try not to ignore things because you are worried that you will be bullied yourself.
• Tell an adult and encourage your friends to ask for support and help.

Cyber bullying

The internet and world wide web are great - information on any subject can be found immediately and communication with other people is virtually instant. However, these new technologies are being exploited by bullies - in one case a whole new website was set up to bully a young person.

If information on a website has been published and is "unacceptable and inappropriate" you can contact the Police and make a formal complaint. You should also attempt to make a complaint to the website administration. If it is an official site it may have a complaints procedure within the site. If the problem arises at school then also make a complaint to the Head - publishing or sending abusive comments is clearly a form of bullying.

If a bully has got hold of your mobile number or email address, make sure you keep a record of all the texts or emails. If the bullying becomes too much to handle you can contact your service provider to change your phone number. If you are being targeted via your email address, you can change your address by re-registering with your Internet Service Provider. Both these options are not ideal, as they penalise the victim in terms of time and cost, but they are effective in eliminating the bully.

Another form of Cyber Bullying is Cyber Stalking - the internet is used to find out lots of information about a person who is then tracked or harassed using that information.

Get advice and help from the DCSF "Don't suffer in silence" campaign.

There's now an ID card called NetIDME aimed at improving online safety for children.

For more general advice on cyber safety check out:

• Think U Know
• Chat Danger