SHERWOOD, Oregon – A recent report shows that a crop of new web sites is making it easier for kids to bully others by allowing them to send text messages anonymously.
Textem.net is one of those sites, and was used in the alleged recent bullying of a Sherwood teen who found herself on the receiving end of an anonymous text message. The teen who had recently put on some weight, received a text on her cell phone that read: “Oink, oink.”
The site does offer a way to block future anonymous texts, but that does not prevent the initial message from reaching its victim.
When Problem Solvers contacted Textem.net for more information, the company responded by saying the intent of the service is simply to provide a way to send free texts and is not designed to bully or attack. Ironically, the company representative responded anonymously:
“For every complaint we have received we have provided instructions on how to address it immediately,” the statement went on to say. “…we have been around for more than 6 years and we have offered such a useful free service for millions of Americans. If we were to receive constant complaints about anonymous messages we will have to address and review our policy about anonymous messages.”
Another site, anontxt.com, allegedly shut down…a result of too much bullying.
On its web site, the status reads: AnonTxt.com Is Currently Down Due To Abuse