Cyberbullying led a 13-year-old girl to tell a support service that she wanted to 'slit her wrists', an Oireachtas committee has heard.
Kate reported the bullying to the platforms and gaming sites she was using.
"But nothing meaningful happened," John Church, Chief Executive of the ISPCC, said.
Then Kate reached out to Childline.
Mr Church said it is important to name bullying for what it is.
"It is not banter" or "a rite of passage", nor is it "having the craic", Mr Church said.
Cyberbullying is "significantly damaging" and deliberate behaviour which can "cause long-lasting harm", he added.
"A reporting mechanism children like Kate could avail of" is an essential component of proposed legislation, he said.
The ISPCC is contributing to the Joint Committee on Media's examination of the Online Safety and Media Regulation Bill.
"The truth is there have been fatalities and lives have been lost because of social media," committee chair, Fianna Fáil TD Niamh Smyth, declared.
The ISPCC's Fiona Jennings expressed "huge concerns" around the "glaring absence... of an individual complaints mechanism" in the bill.
CyberSafeKids is a charity that wants to make children "stronger, smarter and safer in the online world".
CEO Alex Cooney believes that it is "essential that [an individual complaints mechanism] be available to Irish children and their guardians, and that the law should provide a vital safety net at a critical point in time".
John Church accused social media companies of putting profit before child safety.
"They put the shareholder first," he said.
Companies like Tik Tok and Facebook are "trading" child protection off against "shareholder value", Mr Church emphasised.
He identified "end to end encryption" as making it harder to tackle online predators and bullies.
"We landed a helicopter on Mars. Surely we can actually protect children at the same time as providing privacy," he told the committee.
Social media companies will be appearing before the committee next week.
Fianna Fáil Senator Malcolm Byrne asked what questions they should face.
"Children should not be able to access certain harmful material online," Tanya Ward, Chief Executive of the Children's Rights Alliance, said.
Online platforms should be held "accountable", she added.
They could use "algorithms and AI (artificial intelligence)" to ensure children do not access unsuitable and harmful material.
Ms Ward warned that children are "very impressionable" and susceptible to advertising.
They are targeted with adverts for alcohol, junk food, and cosmetic treatments which "distorts their self-image".
She suggested asking online platforms about the profiling and targeting methods they use on children.
Alex Cooney said a lot more needs to be done on public awareness around online safety, as happens with road safety.
She also said that there is a real need for "training and support" for gardaí who are dealing with this issue, as she hears "really inconsistent reports" about the support victims receive.
