In The Know: Shipping And Ship Or Dip
'Shipping' is when a student links two classmates/teachers online in a romantic relationship - whether or not they’re actually involved. 'Ship or dip' is a type of shipping when a student names two people and asks others to vote if they would be a good couple or not.
What's the harm?
Shipping and Ship or Dip pages can have a serious impact on young people and the community:
- Embarrassment and shame – Being judged or voted on in front of peers can be humiliating.
- Bullying and pile-ons – Comments, memes and direct messages can escalate quickly.
- Rumours and reputational damage – False stories feel “real” once shared and screenshotted.
- Peer pressure – Young people may feel forced to join in or “pick a side”.
- Unsafe boundaries – Involving teachers or staff crosses professional/ethical lines and can seriously affect wellbeing.
- Lasting impact – Content spreads fast, can be saved, and may resurface later.
Quick plan if your child is targeted
- Stay calm, listen, and avoid taking devices away.
- Work together to save evidence.
- Use in-app safety tools together and review privacy settings, report and block.
- Tell the school if it involves students or staff.
- Contact Netsafe for advice on next steps.
What your child can do to reduce the harm of shipping pages
When people like, comment, or share a shipping post, they become part of the problem and add to the harm. Instead, rangatahi can take steps to be part of the solution.
If your child sees a shipping or ship or dip post:
- Don’t engage: Don’t like, vote, comment, or reshare.
- Check in on the person(s) targeted to offer support.
- Speak up in the group to ask for the post to be taken down, and redirect attention to a new topic.
- Report harmful posts to the platform, a trusted adult, and Netsafe.
What can parents and whānau do?
Chat regularly with your child about what’s happening online and offline. Ask what they’re enjoying, what’s worrying them, and how their friendships are going. Relaxed, ongoing conversations build trust so young people come to you when something goes wrong online.
A helpful approach for these conversations
- Stay calm and curious; avoid jumping to conclusions
- Listen first, before giving advice
- Focus on understanding their experience
- Keep the conversation open, not one-off
Conversation Starters
- “I’ve heard about ‘shipping’ or ‘ship or dip’ is that something people are doing at your school or online?”
- “What do you think makes it funny for people? And what do you think it feels like for the people being talked about?”
- “I’ve seen ‘shipping/ship or dip’ online – what have you noticed at school or on your feeds?”
- “If someone posted about you like that, what would feel okay, and what wouldn’t?”
- “What would you want your friends to do if it happened to you?”
- “How would you feel if people voted on you or a friend? What would you want others to do?”
- “If you saw a post like this, what’s the safest response – engage, ignore, report, or check in with the people named?”
- “Sometimes even liking or voting can add to it, what do you think a better response could be?”
- “Who would you talk to if this happened – me, a teacher, a coach, someone else?”
- “Let’s check your privacy settings together and set a plan for blocking, reporting and saving screenshots.”
Let your child know that if anything like this ever involved them or their friends, you are there for them and can help them get support.
What else can help
These tips can help protect your child's digital footprint and reduce the risk of harm
Help your child to set social media and gaming accounts to private, limit who can tag them, and turn off location sharing.
Once they share something online, it can spread quickly and be hard to remove. Encourage your child to consider, “Would I be okay if a teacher, future boss, or family member saw this?”
Talk about the importance of asking consent before sharing photos of someone else online, as what they share becomes part of their digital footprint.
Download this advice as a one-pager
Netsafe support for schools
Netsafe provides free harm prevention education tools for schools and kura, funded by the Ministry of Education.
Let your child's school know that they can visit The Kete (https://education.netsafe.org.nz) and register with a school email address, to access a range of resources and on-demand materials to support staff and students.
