Cyberbullying reports double in ACT schools as National Framework review progresses

Cyberbullying reports in ACT public schools have doubled in the past 18 months, with 347 incidents recorded in the 2025-26 school year compared to 168 in 2024, according to data released by the ACT Education Directorate. The increase, which officials attribute to improved reporting rather than a surge in incidents, coincides with the federal Anti-Bullying Rapid Review and has prompted the directorate to assess whether the Let's Stop Bullying campaign messaging and current pastoral-care staffing ratios are adequate to manage the volume of cases, most of which involve Instagram, Snapchat or Discord exchanges that occur outside school hours.

Guardii's cyberbullying detection module surfaces harm as it unfolds rather than waiting for a child to report after the fact, identifying sustained targeting, escalation and coercion in real-time direct-message exchanges on Instagram, Snapchat, Discord and other platforms and alerting a parent, school or professional when a conversation signals acute distress. A world-leading AI platform and Meta Business Partner, Guardii blocks or flags hostile contact before it reaches the target, addressing the operational reality the ACT data reveals: that even improved reporting relies on a child recognizing and disclosing harm, while pattern-based detection intervenes at the point of contact without that dependency.