Introduction to Forums – A Warning
While getting on to a forum and posting (especially for the first time) can be a lot of fun and exhilarating, there is a sobering note that comes along with joining forums (and with communicating with anyone you don’t know on the internet).
While a certain level of trust is involved when talking to any stranger, talking to people you don’t know on the internet involves even more trust. The person talking to you who says she is a twenty year old woman from Germany could actually be a twelve year old girl from Michigan. While you can do some research, often you just don’t know for sure.
Whenever talking to someone you don’t know, always follow your instincts. And what instinct doesn’t catch, common sense should. Don’t give out information right away. In fact, many forums have rules against posting personal phone numbers, addresses and email addresses.
When someone seems to pass the basic levels of trust, another way to see who they are is to use Voice Chat over Yahoo, MSN or Skype, and especially Web Camera contact. Voice can be a giveaway if someone is faking and webcam makes it almost impossible.
No matter how well you think you may know someone, you don’t truly know them. Be suspicious of anyone who always gives excuses for not giving equal exchanges of information or asks you for inappropriate information.
This is coming from someone who knows both the best of the internet and the worst. Mr. JM and I met on a creative writer’s website and eventually got married. However, Mr. JM and I also got conned by a young woman posing as a very ill older man. She gained our sympathies and wasn’t sorry when she got caught. She even stalked me for months after she was caught.
Please take it from someone who knows and be careful.
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