No trivial matter: Cyberbullying has a wider impact than the conventional type of bullying as it involves many more people participating in the attack, according to Assoc Prof Dr Mohammad Rahim.
PETALING JAYA: The world of cyberbullying on social media platform TikTok is far darker and nastier than what people think it is, as the tragedy of Rajeswary Appahu has shown.
The recent turn of events that led to the death of the 30-year-old social media influencer and activist has revealed a web of thuggery, harassment, character assassination and attacks that goes far beyond what the eye can see.
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Aside from being hired “cyberassassins”, the culprits are said to also use their bullying sessions to gather followers as the social media platform’s algorithm enables those with a massive following to earn money from live streams.
The money comes by way of “gifts” sent by viewers to the host. Viewers pay for these virtual presents through various payment methods, including online transfers and credit as well as debit cards.
Apparently, payments for “thuggery services” are also made through these gifts.
A TikToker who had spent months observing and recording the shenanigans said children were not spared, with two boys pulled up for trolling on the social media application a few months ago.
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“There were six men in the live session chastising the boys. The host, who was picked up recently to help with investigations into Rajeswary’s death, bombarded them with vulgarities,” said the observer.
He claimed that the boys were told to give each other tight slaps, which the victims complied with.
“All the men who participated in the torture of the two underaged boys should be hauled up and dealt with accordingly,’’ said the man, adding that the bully and one of his female associates have since been arrested for allegedly tormenting Rajeswary.
The bullying session carried out at 2.30am drew more than 700 viewers.
According to the observer, social media entrepreneurs, especially women selling cosmetic products, also reached out to the bullies to settle their disputes.
“People will be given an open warning to not ‘langgar’ (disturb or question) certain individuals and if they did, they have to be prepared to face the consequences,” he said.
During the harassment live sessions, the host’s “henchmen and women” will be brought up as guests, allowing them to yell and swear in unison at the victims.
Viewers are also asked to torment the victims. The victims’ telephone numbers will also be disclosed.
“These live sessions are carried out in the wee hours of the morning and dozens of people will be calling the victims on their mobile phones, harassing them regardless of the time,’’ he revealed.
The man added that there were also instances where hoodlums had gone to the homes of the victims just to take photographs to frighten them further after their addresses were disclosed.
The TikToker said the intensity of the torture and bullying had also spawned several one-man trolls, who used pseudonyms to battle these bullies by giving them a dose of their own medicine.
Terrance Mikail Miranda was bullied and humiliated after he was accused of being one of the trolls slamming the bullies.
On top of Miranda being mercilessly taunted himself, photos of his mother and siblings, including a brother who is a senior Roman Catholic parish priest, were put up in a video with a narration of his past marital woes.
“I think their claim that I was the troll was just an excuse.
“They have so much information about me and my family. I think they were paid by someone who knows us to torture and humiliate me and my family,” said Miranda in an interview.
The trolling went on for almost two days.
During a live session, Miranda asked for a chance to speak and told them that they had the wrong man but he was muted and blocked instead.
“It was a terrible experience for me,’’ said the father-of-two, who runs a cafe and pub.
One of the trolls, who went after the bullies by uploading nasty videos with information about them (the bullies), said he did it because he could not tolerate how they had abused others.
“When we saw the way they shamed people, especially women, and used vulgar terms to speak about male victims’ mothers, wives and sisters during their live sessions, we knew they had to be stopped,” said the man, who calls himself K.
With a few other friends, K set about to stop the bullying.
The group was thought to have succeeded in reining in the bullies until the night Rajeswary and four other women were mercilessly abused by the culprits.
Criminologist Assoc Prof Dr Mohammad Rahim Kamaluddin said cyberbullying has existed since the emergence of social media but only gathered momentum after the 2020 pandemic as people became more social media-dependent.
Dr Mohammad Rahim, who is with Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, said cyberbullying has a wider impact than the conventional type of bullying as it involves many more people participating in the attack.
“If conventional bullying and attacks leave physical injuries and bruises, cyberbullying has a far more serious impact as it affects the victim’s mental health,” he added.
He pointed out that some of the bullies had acted under the pretext of advocating for certain issues but were in actual fact cyberbullying their victims.
Dr Mohammad Rahim said all the guests and followers in the live sessions who had participated in cyberbullying must be identified and duly dealt with.
Meanwhile, Digital Minister Gobind Singh Deo suggested that new laws be considered to place responsibility on owners of social media platforms to prevent future untoward incidents such as Rajeswary’s tragic death and incessant cyberbullying as a whole.
“This is to ensure that no misuse happens and, in the event it does, immediate action can be taken to prevent it from happening again,” said Gobind in a statement.
