30.5% of the users of the Telefono Azzurro listening and counseling lines who report problems relating to the internet area also report suffering related to the mental health area: in particular these users report having tried self-harm (13%), suicide attempts (5%) and suicidal ideation (13%).
In short, in 31% of cases, online-related problems correspond to serious illnesses with aggressive outbursts.
This is indicated by the association that tomorrow and the day after, on the occasion of Safer Internet Day, the international day of awareness for the safe use of the Internet, organizes a series of virtual meetings to promote initiatives in favor of the protection of minors online.
"The situation - observes Ernesto Caffo, president of Telefono Azzurro - is serious and we must intervene immediately.
The growing use of technology, which the pandemic has forced minors in recent months, has unfortunately contributed to a strong increase in online and general of digital dangers. Therefore, Telefono Azzurro is at the forefront to bring the risks that the Internet presents to young people to the center of the debate ".
"Today - recalled the Minister of Education, Lucia Azzolina, in a post - is the National Day against bullying and cyberbullying. Phenomena that show no sign of abating. As adults we cannot turn the other way.
We must be by the side of the children, guide them, not leave them alone.
We must educate them to recognize the signals, not to underestimate them, to make them understand, clearly, that bullying and cyberbullying are forms of violence, not stunts, even when the aggressions occur on the Net. Indeed, on the web certain phenomena multiply their effects, obtaining greater visibility, with often devastating consequences for the victims ".
Roberto Pella, vicar vice president of Anci, underlined" the importance of education in the correct use of the web, both within families and at school, and importance of listening to the needs of young people.
The data published by the Indifesa Observatory, relating to 2020, are, in fact, alarming and must arouse growing commitment on the part of institutions at all levels of government.
In this sense, the results of the hearings strongly desired and conducted with determination by the President of the Parliamentary Commission for Childhood and Adolescence, Senator Licia Ronzulli, are fundamental documents that contribute to the planning of targeted public policies, on which all political forces of Parliament are converging ".
"The responses of 6,000 adolescents, aged 13 to 23, reveal that 68% of them report having witnessed episodes of bullying, or cyberbullying, while 61% are victims. Boys and girls express suffering from episodes of psychological violence suffered by peers (42.23%). Among the survey participants, 6 out of 10 declare that they do not feel safe online and, among the greatest risks, both males and females place cyberbullying first (66, 34%).
The consequences of Covid-19 and the measures of isolation and social distancing are heavy: 93% of adolescents said they felt alone, with an increase of 10% compared to the previous survey. An even more significant increase if you think about it that the percentage of those who indicated that they felt lonely "very often" went from 33% to a dramatic 48% ".