By Holly Thomas


Outraged: Cher Lloyd, pictured arriving for the Scott Mills show last week, spoke out on BBC Newsbeat against 'trolls' who engage in online bullying


Cher Lloyd is calling for government intervention to halt online abuse from 'trolls' who torment others via social networking sites.

The singer has said that not enough is being done to prevent such bullying at present.

The 18-year-old's comments come after she received a death threat via Twitter in response to a birthday message she posted for her mother on the site.


The Swagger Jagger singer spoke out on BBC Newsbeat to stress her concern, saying: ‘It disgusts me that online bullying - nobody really cares about it.'

‘No one has made a big enough impact to stop these people. I'd definitely like to see more done about it,’ she continued.

Cher believes that the responsibility to take preventative action lies at the top, and asked who should put a stop to such abuse said: ‘I kind of think it's the Government.’

Just over a week ago, the star tweeted 'Its mamma lloyds birthday!! Love you mum! Xxxx'

Almost immediately she received the disturbing reply: 'shut the f*** up before I kill your mum in front of you.'

Responsibility: Cher believes that the government needs to take more preventative action, and hopes to use her celebrity status to raise the prominence of the issue


In the heat of the moment Cher responded: 'I'm sure you'd go to jail for that and get into deep s***, come on think about it dumb a**,'

The singer deleted the message soon after she sent it, but the incident was immediately picked up, sparking a media furore.

Dealing with such an upsetting event in the public eye has naturally been difficult.

‘If I get a nasty tweet, or if someone shouts at me in the street that's really disrespectful to me or my family, I kind of wait until I go home,' Cher confessed. ‘You shut the door and then you can have a cry about it. No one needs to know.'

The anonymity the internet affords makes it easy for perpetrators to hide their identity, often meaning they are 'bolder' in their attacks than they might be otherwise.

Experience: Cher received a death threat via Twitter after she posted a happy birthday message to her mother on the site


‘It's strange because I think, would these people be big enough and strong enough to come up to me and say these hurtful things?' said Cher.

‘Because I've got the idea that they actually wouldn't. They would never, ever say that to my face,’ she added.

The star is determined to use her status to help others who may be suffering as a result of online bullying.

‘It's one thing writing to me - I'm getting stronger with this stuff, I can take it on the chin - but there are girls out there and boys out there that can't take that,' she said.

In the public eye: The singer rose to fame when she appeared on X Factor last year, and worries that this year's hopefuls may suffer similar abuse


source:dailymail