There is no place where millions of children — many of them largely unsupervised — gather in greater numbers than the internet.

And the dangers that exist online — cyberbullying, exposure to harmful or violent content, and risks to mental health — can be deadly.

In February, the FBI penned an open letter warning of what it calls sadistic online exploitation, where networks connect with children online and manipulate or coerce them into producing or sharing graphic or abusive content, or engage in self-harm or violence.

“Any child with a device in their hand is exposed to these places. It only takes a click or two,” said Melissa Nelson, an assistant professor of practice at the University of Pittsburgh’s School of Education. “When you have a child who doesn’t have a trusted adult or a friend group, they go online and find nefarious groups.”

While a new state law will mandate social media literacy education and cyberbullying policies in public school districts, its effectiveness will rely on how exactly schools will implement it, experts say.

“It’s movement in a positive direction,” Nelson said. “Like all mandates that come out that seem to put the onus on schools, we need to take a step back. When schools teach people how to be digital citizens, it should be a collective effort. It can’t stop at the school doors. We need parents to get on board.”

‘A new language to understand’

Nelson points to the Cyberbullying Research Center as a tool adults can use to keep up with the online sphere of social media and cyberbullying. She also recommends DUCC (Developing & Using Critical Comprehension), a digital literacy program for elementary-aged students.

“If you’re over 30 (years old), this is a new language to understand,” she said.

Overall, the new state regulations are a good idea, said Justin Patchin, co-founder of the Cyberbullying Research Center and a criminal justice professor at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire.

“That’s something most schools are already doing,” Patchin said. “The concern is, what is the nature of that information? Is it evidence-based? Is it fear-based? You want to make sure you’re providing children evidence-based information so they can make decisions online.”

Patchin’s center maintains a glossary of social media terms, and tracks the most popular social media apps.

But can adults keep up with the latest trends?

“To be honest, they can’t,” Patchin said. “I live and breathe this stuff and I have a hard time keeping up.”

Patchin recommends schools allow a staff member adequate time to educate themselves on social media trends.

Another issue is how schools define bullying or cyberbullying. New Jersey uses a similar law to what Pennsylvania will implement, but some Garden State schools have reported zero instances of bullying during the year.

“That’s impossible. Bullying is happening,” Patchin said. “That tells me they’re defining bullying in a way that’s so narrow, or they’re not recognizing it as a problem. Because of this mandate, schools will feel they’re under a microscope. But schools need to do research to find out how much bullying or cyberbullying is happening.”

Candice Biernesser is a co-director of Pitt’s SPARC-Life Center, a research facility that studies and works to prevent adolescent suicide risk. She also views the new state regulations as a net positive.

“It gives a lever to pull this into professional development meetings, and to have training, and to have resources offered by the state on this topic,” Biernesser said. “We also recognize that educators are asked to do more and more each year, constantly, and I do think about what that looks like for them in terms of implementing this.”

In the Carlynton School District, which encompasses Carnegie, Rosslyn Farms and Crafton boroughs, social media literacy is embedded into middle and high school curriculum, said Assistant Superintendent Jeff Taylor.

Lessons focus on digital citizenship, online safety and responsible use of technology. Resources and training are provided to staff, he said. The district also has a cyberbullying policy, where incidents are investigated and parents are notified, he said.

“We’re reviewing the new state requirements and will be updating our programming and policies this fall to ensure full compliance, including tracking and reporting as mandated,” Taylor said.

Bullying ‘in a more fluid way’

For the most part, the apps themselves don’t matter, Patchin said. What does matter is how they’re being used.

“General behaviors are the same — hurtful comments, or rumors spreading,” he said. “It’s becoming more frequent and there needs to be more efforts against it.”

And now more than ever, consequences can be deadly. Multiple lawsuits nationwide accuse social media companies of curating online algorithms targeted youth, leading to depression and suicide. In 2024, a 13-year-old boy from Shippensburg died by suicide after becoming the victim of an online financial sextortion scam.

“Kids are experiencing more anxiety and depression in the last four, five years than previously, and it’s hard to say why,” Patchin said. “We’re hearing about more cases with suicidal thoughts, but whether they’re related to cyberbullying or bullying, it’s hard to say.”

Bullying existed before social media, but now “moves in a more fluid way” thanks to social media, Biernesser said.

“There’s data to indicate that this kind of online environment, when you don’t have the ability to always see the person’s facial expressions, how they’re interacting, or the tone of their voice, is what they refer to as cue absence,” she said. “That can sometimes result in harsher bullying experiences, and that’s part of the complexities that we see online.”

And one click can flurry a string of more negative content, and connections to bad actors, through the algorithms. The rise of artificial intelligence can rapidly distribute manipulated or distorted images.

“Deep fakes are very easy to create. We know social media is being used to pull children into spaces. Gaming platforms are grooming children into platforms. Child sexual abuse material is being created so prolifically and we can’t keep up with it,” said Pitt’s Nelson. “But to simply say let’s shut it all down is shortsighted. This is now the life of children and adolescents. We have to figure out what the positives are.”

What is the solution?

State law has required schools to have behavior and threat assessment teams to identify and assess students whose behavior may be a threat to others.

“They have to be digging deeply into what their online footprint is and how they’re engaging in online spaces,” Nelson said. “For teachers to teach this, they have to ask explicit questions, but this is where it becomes a shared responsibility.”

Teens can cope online by curating a positive online environment and having supportive conversations with people they trust, Biernesser said. But that’s easier said than done.

“We did a national survey with over 1,000 teens, and asked them about experiences related to cyberbullying, and how they sought help,” Biernesser said. “About 80% of them said they never told any trusted adult in their life at all — not a parent, not a teacher, not anyone. We need more spaces to have an opportunity for teens and young people to talk about this.”

Schools should implement feedback from students when revising their policies, Biernesser said. Conversation starters can be as simple as: Can you explain this to me? What are some ways that social media has been good or bad for you?

“We’re not picking up a piece of paper and reading off bullet points of a policy, but opening dialogues and thinking about a positive school climate in a way that can foster comfort in believing this is a safe space,” she said.

The new regulations won’t stop bullying or cyberbullying, but it could reduce how often it occurs, Patchin said.

“Bullying and cyberbullying don’t become a significant problem unless it’s happening for a while,” he said. “How will parents and schools respond in the early stages to get it to stop?”