Irish girls as young as nine have received threatening or inappropriate messages on their mobile phones, a major EU study has indicated. John Downesreports.
The report also reveals that some of the children surveyed had viewed violent or sexually explicit material on the internet, while others were aware of instances where older men had attempted to meet their friends.
In a separate finding, respondents agreed with measures adopted by schools to combat cyberbullying. However, most respondents said they generally accessed sites that were blocked at school - such as Bebo, YouTube and MSN instant messenger - at home.
The study of Irish 9-10 year-olds and 12-14 year-olds, which forms part of a wider EU Commission study, reveals that one female participant in the younger age group had received a text message from an unknown number saying: "I'm going to kill you". When she told her father, he tried to trace the number but was unsuccessful and contacted the gardaí.
In another instance, a girl in the 9-10 age group who was researching details of her family's crest was unwittingly directed to a pornographic website.
Elsewhere, a girl in the 12-14 age group told how a friend had gone to meet a stranger who turned out to be much older than had been thought.
Overall the study, based on group discussions with 34 young people conducted by TNS-mrbi in April, suggests young people are increasingly internet savvy, with many participants saying they were "self taught".
The research forms part of a wider study of children in the 27 EU member countries as well as Iceland and Norway.
Boys participating in the older groups recalled seeing footage on the YouTube website of "some guy getting kicked in the face".
They also recounted "some lads in school" taking pictures of someone after a fight and then uploading them to the internet.
"If you take pictures of someone and they don't like it, you can put it up on the internet," another said.
One girl from the younger group told how she had received a text message, which turned out to be a prank from a friend, saying: "I know what you're wearing."
"I am three steps away from your house" was another message received by a girl in this age group. This turned out to be one of her brothers "messing".
However, the researchers noted an element of fear in the younger female groups regarding "shocking contents".