'Online bullying: parents mustn't bury their heads in the sand' If we bury our heads in the sand to this, then our children will find out how to conduct themselves online on their own, which is much more risky. In fact, teaching Internet safety should be no less important than teaching road safely - a call recently asserted by sexual abuse charity, the Marie Collins Foundation. It is a sad fact that a recent online safety talk at my children's school was attended by only a small handful of parents. Getting to grips with "Parenting for the Snapchat Generation" means learning about services your child could be using such as Snapchat or Whisper - even getting them to show you the apps and websites and how they use them. Fitting this into a busy schedule is not easy, but what is more important than protecting young people from the darker side of online interaction? As well as learning about what's out there, parents should talk directly to their children about cyber bullying and online risks, as awkward as these conversations can be. This needs to be done in an open-minded way so children don't feel they're being accused of anything, otherwise they'll never come to you because they'll be worried about getting into trouble. It is better to have this type of open dialogue than to run the risk of children communicating through secret online personas. Certainly the main reason that children tell me they wouldn't turn to their parents if they are upset by something that has happened online is that they fear they will be told off or, worse, have their devices confiscated. If we let them know that adults want to support them online, as well as in the real world, we can help bring online bullying out in the open. Inevitably, there will still be things that children refuse to tell their parents. There are a number of tools and resources available to help with peace of mind here. Point2Protect, for instance, enables you to monitor and moderate how your child uses their device, wherever they are. While you certainly don't want your children to think you are "spying" on them, these tools can be used in a consensual way and encourage a dialogue. For instance, you could sit down together to discuss and set guidelines on which sites and apps are accessed and when, drawing a line where you think it needs to be. Of course, not all the responsibility lies with the parents. Schools have a pastoral responsibility to have processes in place to tackle cyber bullying and can have links to valuable support and resources. As a concerned parent, speaking to a trusted teacher can help enormously. It is only with this collaborative involvement that schools, parents and young people can ensure that cyber bullying is thoroughly quashed. Andy Phippen, professor of social responsibility in IT, Plymouth University