Answer:
Cyberbullying can be addressed under civil law or criminal law, based on the situation. A cyberbully may be engaged in defamation ... Defamation is when the person who is bullying causes harm to someone’s reputation by spreading false information about that person. In general, defamation that appears temporarily (as unrecorded speech or in a live broadcast) is called slander, and defamation that appears permanently (in a book or on a Web site) is called libel. To be libelous, a statement must do harm to someone’s reputation, have a clear and obvious target, and can be seen by people other than the person making the statement and the target. In libel cases, the target can lay a suit against the person making the statement. If the suit is successful, the person making the statement will have to pay damages (money) to the target. A person accused of libel may defend himself or herself by saying that the statement was true, that it was a fair comment (a genuine criticism, not a personal attack), or that he or she innocently reproduced the statement without knowing what it was. The person cyberbullying may be creating an unsafe environment by making the target feel that she or he cannot go to school without facing violence, teasing or exclusion. Harassment is a crime under the Criminal Code, and is punishable up to 10 years in prison. Defamatory libel is a crime under the Criminal Code, and is punishable up to 5 years in prison. Publishing intimate images without consent is a crime under the Criminal Code.