Internet Predators

sam wishes you were here.:

My mom is so cool with Internet friends;
she knows I have sense.

See, my mom knows that I have sense, but she gets paranoid. Like every time she sees something on the news or Dateline about internet pervs, she'll start being over-protective and asking what sites I'm on and who I'm talking to over MSN.

Actually, a few minutes ago, she started freaking because she walked by when I was messaging one of my friends over MSN and she had a picture of herself as her display picture. My mom started being all "why does she have a picture of herself? It's bad! She doesn't know who she's talking to!"
Me: "Mom, it's MSN...she knows everyone on her contact list. They've all seen her before."

But I can understand where my mom's worry comes from, there are a lot of pervs out there.

My mom is cool with it, she just asks me whats I tell others and whats on myspace, but other than that she isnt some detective and has to know what im doing online.

my mom freaks otu really bad, i got a myspace and shes all is your picture on ther and im all yes and then shes all, omg do you talk to anyone you don't know???? im like i talk to my friend s from school and shes all what about when you go on message boards and who are you IMing and who are you always talking to meaning my "internet boyfriend" as he calls himself zakk and im all hes a friend and she freaks and says dont ell him about yourself and dont tell him anything that can tell you whre you live, my mom freaks i know what to say and what not to say im not gonna go making appointment to have sex with someone on the net, thats not me i don't need that from someone i dunno, i can get that from people in my neighborhood if- if being the key word im not a whore- if i wanted to

A lot of people I know have nexopia, not myspace. I don't know what it is exactly, but I know some people had troubles with internet predators with it, it was on the news awhile ago.

I watched an episode of Without a Trace today.

There are websites out there claiming to children that are adopted that they will "help reunite them with their birth parents."
Then they give them an address or phone number, etc. to a pedophile's house.

People are sick.

heartcore love for sam;:

My mom is so cool with Internet friends;
she knows I have sense.

My dad thinks that, my mom is paranoid. I wanted to know my height, and she was like "don't tell people on the internet that". Oh yeah, you can definitely recognize me because I'm the one who's that tall. I wasn't going to put it on the internet anyway, I just wanted to know.

It`s awful. The people who get involved with internet predators are usually the naive teens/children who think they`ve got internet smarts and wind up using it as a place to absorb the attention they probably don`t get in real life. I say this because I was once an ignorant, lonely child and almost got myself into HUGE trouble over the internet.
I have learned a lot since then, but unfortunately, my father completely distrusts the myspace community [and almost any other internet networking website]. My mom trusts me a lot, but doesn`t understand the precautions I take. Unfortunately, I was forced to delete my account on MySpace, at my father`s request. I was upset at first, but I got over it.
In the end, MySpace isn`t life [unless you make it your life]. DON`T.
As for Dateline and all those other shows--I think they are wonderful at educating parents. But, I also believe that a parent should take the time and ask their child what precautions they take and the child should show their parent[s] their myspace/blog/whatever. If you don`t want to show your parents, you really shouldn`t have one in the first place.
I am glad our society has finally started to crack down on these predators, though. Sorry for the long post ^_^

Seriously. Just because some girls got raped by a person they met on myspace doesn't mean the whole network has to pay for it. I think it's the girls fault they ever even decided to meet the guy. The interent can be a scary place. That's why it's your responsibilty to take care of yourself on there.

I think that's just a rumor.
Alot of people are very ignorent when it comes to being safe on the internet. I've seen myspaces where they have there phone number and adress and loads of personal information.

Glittering Wax Butterfly:

If you don`t want to show your parents, you really shouldn`t have one in the first place.

I wouldn't want my mom to see my MySpace. I don't have any personal information on there but I still wouldn't want her to see it. She would freak out and ask me why I'm friends with all those people. Most of them are people from INO, bands, or friends that I know.
I really hate it when people blame the website. On MySpace if someone starts to talk to you in sexual way or says things you don't like you can block that person. My mom would freak out if she knew that I was friends with people on the internet. She doesn't even want me tobe on INO.

My mom insists that i'm going to get killed on the internet. one time she was yelling at my dad over the phone {i live with my dad} and she's like, well, does julia have a blog?
she doesn't even know what a blog is.
she just assumes that i'm up to no good.
not everybody should get punished because a few chicks are idiots. if they're that stupid to agree to meet somebody, then they probably should have been dead in the first place.
just my opinion, don't murder me like my mom thinks is gonna happen.

I just kinda talk to people i know on the internet, except in this case, because i've met a lot of cool people on here. But usually, i just talk to people i know. If some girls want to talk to random strangers thats all on them, but they shouid take care of themselves more...

yeah, ok, i talk to people from INO on myspace.
but i haven't put my school on my myspace, i think that's stupid.
a few of my friends actualy have, and i really think that is dumb.
some-one could easily find you, and the prospect of that scares me.
my mom knows i come on here, and she's fine with it.
if some-one adds me on MSN, and i dont know them, i just block them, simple as.
but some girls in my class have my old teacher's msn/hotmail address. (he left to travel the world) and they said to him jokingly, that they'd talked to a 40 year old man on webcam. he told the headmistress, and she actually spoke to them, and yelled at them.
some people in my class are so stupid...

This is my cold, hard opinion right here, not even looking for a debate:

I hate how everyone talks about myspace like it's the spawn of friggin satan. If you use it properly it's totally 100% safe.

All of these horrible things that happen with kids getting raped by people they met on myspace might happen a lot, but similar things happen on other sites too. Why aren't they getting media coverage? Is it because watching a news story about a site you use makes you want to keep watching that particular news station? Why do all of the news stations choose myspace to report on? Could it be that myspace is one of the most popular sites right now?

The media is making myspace out to be the only place where you can be hurt by internet predators so they can gain more viewers. It's making kids even less safe. They think, "Well as long as I don't have a myspace, this forum is fine.". It's not.

I think girls who act like e-whores are just asking to get e-raped by some stranger who happened to get a hold of their myspace or something.
I never really give out my EXACT location or phone number or anything like that and I DON'T pose like a whore in pictures.

just dont give anyone your address. you can put pictures up, just not revealing ones. cause thats dangerous and might make some sicko want to become good friends with you so you will eventually tell them where yo live then they will rape you and shit. just be safe. if anything happens to you from myspace its your fault, not myspace.

Personally, I think that the kids who get themselves into those kinds of situations aren't the sharpest crayons in the box. No offense to anyone, but you would think that after seeing how many predators are on the internet you wouldn't give out your P.I. What kind of idiot does that? But I'm not fully blaming the kid. Of course, the predator shouldn't take advantage of kids. But I dunno... I'm just rambling...

I would never plan to meet someone I knew online in person.

I met one of my online friends last month at the Alexisonfire meet and greet, but we didn't plan it at all. We just ran into eachother.