Parents who are giving their children a mobile phone for the first time this Christmas should ideally sit down and make a “phone contract” with them first, according to an expert on cyberbullying.

As the popularity of the controversial website ask.fm fades, another site is gaining currency with teenagers, leading to social media experts warning parents to talk to their children about Snapchat.

We must stop thinking that those viewing online child pornography are a lower risk to children than a person convicted for sexually abusing a child, according to a leading child protection consultant.

Allowing those under the age of 15 to have unfettered access to the internet is akin to giving them the keys to a car and then wondering why they have crashed, a leading cyberbullying expert has said.

A forensic psychologist who runs courses on cyberbullying has said viral videos such as the Cork schoolgirl fight will serve to wake youngsters up to the dangers of posting their lives online.

While the internet is being blamed for the surge in teenage bullying, name-calling and cold-shouldering have always been used as weapons against vulnerable teenagers.

“Social media. It’s second nature to us. It’s massive. It’s everywhere. It’s at home, on the way to school, in class, at dinner, in bed,” one of the 16-year-old girls we interviewed said.