Government workers are being subjected to a high level of cyber abuse, a new study suggests.

The Queensland University of Technology has completed a set of three surveys involving more than 600 public sector workers ranging in rank from the most junior to departmental bosses from offices across Australia.

The reports found 72 per cent of participants had suffered or witnessed cyber bullying at work in the six months prior.

It appears that abusers are using the anonymity of email and other web-based messaging services to harass and torment fellow workers.

Victims told researchers that online bullying could be more confronting than “traditional” face-to-face harassment, as it makes them vulnerable to attacks at any time.

Some reported that their hounding continued even after they changed departments or moved interstate.

Researcher Felicity Lawrence says defamatory material like videos or other memes could destroy an employee's reputation and career.

One senior manager said vengeful employees had set up a defamatory website dedicated to her, which she was powerless to stop.

“At every level and every position that reported to me, everyone is aware of the potential for cyber bullying and its potential impact,” Dr Lawrence told Fairfax Media.

“Public servants felt they were being bullied in the workplace through work email, telephone call, text messaging and text messages.

“But the No. 1 was email, work email was the thing that everyone mentioned, it can be internal, from other public servants and or from clients and it is at all levels, not just junior staff.

“The fact that this kind of activity can be anonymous, as a manager, as a secretary, as a junior member of staff, you don't know necessarily who is cyber bullying you because people can hide behind technology.”

Bullying has been estimated to cost the Australian economy around $36 billion a year in lost productivity, and with the giant workforce across government departments, Dr Lawrence says the cost of cyber bullying could be “profound”.

She said something should be done, such as updating outdated protocols, to end the harassment plaguing government staff.

“The public servants I surveyed indicated that there's a kind of 'cyber-underground' that has created a hidden negative online workplace culture where some employees feel they are free to harass and bully one another and yet remain unaccountable for their behaviour,” Dr Lawrence said.

“In this respect, my research has significant implications for employers under their duty of care obligations within the Work Health Safety Act 2011.

“One practical solution to mitigate workplace cyber bullying would be to develop federal anti-cyber bullying legislation covering all Australian workplaces.

“Organisations should also be establishing clear policies supported by management along with effective training and education programs to address the issue.”