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Based on data from the 2014 General Social Survey, this is the first Statistics Canada study that examines the characteristics associated with being a victim of cyberbullying or cyberstalking and various indicators of trust, personal behaviour and mental health.

  • In 2014, about 17% of the population aged 15 to 29 (representing about 1.1 million people) that accessed the Internet at some point between 2009 and 2014 reported they had experienced cyberbullying or cyberstalking.
  • Of those who experienced cyberbullying or cyberstalking, 36% reported that they had experienced cyberbullying but not cyberstalking, 33% reported that they experienced cyberstalking but not cyberbullying, and 31% reported experiencing both.
  • Sociodemographic factors associated with cyberbullying and cyberstalking are not necessarily the same. Cyberbullying was more prevalent in younger age groups and within the homosexual/bisexual population, while cyberstalking was more prevalent among the single, never married population and among women.
  • Young Canadians with a past experience of victimization were significantly more likely to experience cyberbullying and cyberstalking. For instance, 31% of those who were physically or sexually assaulted before the age of 15 experienced either cyberstalking or cyberbullying, compared with 13% of those who did not report an experience of assault.
  • Cyberbullying is associated with the presence of an emotional, psychological or mental health condition, mistrust of people and marijuana use, while cyberstalking is associated with taking measures to protect oneself from crime.

Read the rest here: Cyberbullying and cyberstalking among Internet users aged 15 to 29 in Canada