Internet safety

Internet safety, it's not just for children... Please take the time to read and do some research

Kids Health
http://kidshealth.org/parent/positive/family/net_safety.html

Australian Government National Child protection
http://www.aifs.gov.au/nch/resources/internetsafety.html

Important information about meeting people

Do not believe everything you read online
You can be anything or anyone you want to be online. Make sure you find out about who you are dealing with.
Do not give out personal information online

Personal information that would let someone find you offline would never be shared online. Your full name, where you work, where you live, your phone number (see my note on giving out your phone number), your fax number...these should not be shared online.

Take your time - do not rush into things
Take your time to try to get to know the person online first. Everyone can put their best cyber-foot forward in the first couple of e-mails. Being consistent is tougher. Make sure you keep the old e-mails to compare the information they give you. In one e-mail, they might tell you they work for the postal service, in another that they are a student - make sure you check out these inconsistencies. They could be taking night classes, or they could just as easily be lying.

Do not be rushed, and do not rush the other person. Ask your friends - sometimes they are not blinded by the same rose-colored glasses you might be.

Start with a phone call
You should move from chatting online to a phone call before you meet offline in person. The safest way to do this is by using a public phone or private number. Set up a time for the call, and give the other person the telephone number of the public phone or you call them from a private number. Once you are comfortable enough, you can share real phone numbers, but make sure you have caller ID service. If things go sour, you can always block their calls. It also lets you know what their number really is. If they block your caller ID, do not accept their calls.

When you do meet, do it with a friend and in a very public place
The first time you meet in person, bring a friend. Meet in a mall, or fast food restaurant. Plan for a short first time get together - coffee or a soda.

Then compare what this person told you about himself or herself online - does it match reality?

Tell a friend
Make sure someone knows whom you are meeting, where you are going and when you are coming back. (Someone other than the person you take with you.) Store all of the e-mail conversations, and let your friend know where to find them. If anything goes wrong, they will be the source of information on how to locate the person you have been chatting with.

Never leave or go home with them
You can extend the meeting to dinner or anything else in a public place. However...PUBLIC is the operative word here. Remember when your mother told you never to get into a car with a stranger? Do not go home with them, to a private place of any kind...not for a while.

Report any attacks or threats to law enforcement
If things go wrong, whether you followed the rules or not, do not be embarrassed to go to the police. Give them all the facts. If you do not report this person, they in all likelihood will do it again. You are allowed to say "no" and have it respected. If anything goes wrong, it is not your fault.

Learn more about protecting yourself and your privacy online and offline
Do your research!

Do not be embarrassed to insist on the following rules
Your safety is the most important thing. Anyone with credibility will respect you for being careful.