24 How Much Should I Worry About Meeting Someone Dangerous This Way?
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This article is from the Internet Personals: Advice for Straights FAQ, by Dean Esmay esmay@syndicomm.com with numerous contributions by others.
24 How Much Should I Worry About Meeting Someone Dangerous This Way?
You shouldn't worry all that much about it. Most people aren't
really dangerous, after all.
Still, while I hesitate to put it this way, let's be blunt: we're all
going to be very depressed the first time we hear about someone who
gets raped or killed by some psychopath who posted (or answered) a
personal ad on the internet. And I'd much rather YOU not be that
person.
Now, don't let that make you paranoid! Remember, you can meet
hurtful, malicious, or just plain evil people ANYWHERE: in a bar, on
the streets, even through friends. There's no way you can get
through life without some risk of meeting someone who will hurt you.
However, in every situation, there are ways to minimize your risks,
and online personals are no exception. Use common sense in any of
your dealings with anyone you meet through the 'net, but probably the
most important thing to remember is this:
Before you meet ANYONE or give your phone number or address to
ANYONE, make sure that persion is willing to give you the same information.
ESPECIALLY if you are dealing with someone using an anonymous email
address!
Also, be sure to check with your system administrators to see if they
keep your personal information in WAIS or Ph or other
publicly-accessible forms so that others can find out about your
address or other info through your mail address. Most systems are
far more secure than that these days, especially the big commercial
services like AOL, GEnie, CIS, etc., but some systems, especially
some colleges, are more careless about these things. Be sure your info
is not publicly available when you begin posting (and that's for
posting anywhere, not just personals groups!).
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