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Cyber bullying

Is it classed as cyber bullying if someone makes a fake account of somebody, because on Instagram someone from my school has made an account of one of my friends, and people keep blaming everyone (including me) no one knows who it is.  What shall I do and I really want to know who made it how can I find out? Thanks from A**** age 10 (nearly 11)
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Sam

Hi there,

Thank you for being brave enough to write to me. I can hear how worried you are about the fake account that has been set up.

You asked if this is cyber bullying or not and I want you to know that it is. Cyber bullying is when a person or a group of people uses the internet, mobile phones, online games or any other kind of digital technology to threaten, tease, upset or humiliate someone else. To find out more you can check out our page about online bullying.

It may be difficult to find out who made the account unless someone actually admits to it. However, this is something you can report to Instagram as it is against their rules. Your friend can report it to Instagram through their help centre. A trusted adult such as a teacher can help them do this.

If the fake profile is of your friend and your friend is under the age of 13, you can also delete their false account using the Report an underage user on Instagram form. You can find out more about Instagram on our bullying on social networks page.

All bullying is wrong and you can get help. As well as reporting online bullying, you can also get support by talking to other people. That could be an adult at school or someone you live with. If you would like to talk more, you can talk with one of our counsellors. ChildLine is a safe place to talk about your feelings and we’re always here for you.

Take care,
Sam 

Need help straight away?

You can talk privately to a counsellor online or call 0800 1111 for free.

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