Danger of Internet chat- especially for children

> > Hi, if you have friends whose children are hooked on internet chat
> > .. this could help bring awareness to them to be careful
> > Of course in our country maybe the tracing part may not be so
> > easy, ya?
> >
> > SAFETY IS NON NEGOTIABLE!
> > >
> >
> > EVERYONE NEEDS TO READ ALL OF THIS and HAVE YOUR CHILDREN READ IT TOO!
> >
> > After tossing her books on the sofa, she decided to grab a snack
> > and get on-line . She logged on under her screen name ByAngel213. She
> > checked her Buddy List and saw GoTo123 was on.
> > She sent him an instant message:
> >
> > ByAngel213:
> > Hi. I'm glad you are on! I thought someone was following
> > me home today. It was really weird!
> >
> > GoTo123:
> > LOL You watch too much TV. Why would someone be following
> > you?
> > Don't you live in a safe neighborhood?
> >
> > ByAngel213:
> > Of course I do. LOL I guess it was my imagination cuz' I
> > didn't see anybody when I looked out.
> >
> > GoTo123:
> > Unless you gave your name out on-line. You haven't done
> > that have you?
> >
> > ByAngel213:
> > Of course not. I'm not stupid you know.
> >
> > GoTo123:
> > Did you have a softball game after school today?
> >
> > ByAngel213:
> > Yes and we won!!
> >
> > GoTo123:
> > That's great! Who did you play?
> >
> > ByAngel213:
> > We played the Hornets. LOL. Their uniforms are so gross!
> > They look like bees. LOL
> >
> > GoTo123:
> > What is your team called?
> >
> > ByAngel213:
> > We are the Canton Cats. We have tiger paws on our
> > uniforms. They are really cool.
> >
> > GoTo123:
> > Did you pitch?
> >
> > ByAngel213:
> > No I play second base. I got to go. My homework has to be
> > done before my parents get home. I don't want them mad at me.
> > Bye!
> > GoTo123:
> > Catch you later. Bye
> >
> > Meanwhile......GoTo123 went to the member menu and began
> > to search for her profile. When it came up, he highlighted it and
> > printed it out. He took out a pen and began to write down what he
> > knew about Angel so far.
> >
> > Her name: Shannon
> > Birthday: Jan. 3, 1985
> > Age: 13
> > State where she lived: North Carolina
> >
> > Hobbies: softball, chorus, skating and going to the mall.
> > Besides this information, he knew she lived in Canton because she
> > had just told him. He knew she stayed by herself until 6:30 p.m.
> > every afternoon until her parents came home from work. He knew
> > she played softball on Thursday afternoons on the school team,
> > and the team was named the Canton Cats. Her favorite number 7 was
> > printed on her jersey. He knew she was in the eighth grade at the
> > Canton Junior High School. She had told him all this in the
> > conversations they had on- line. He had enough information to find
> > her now.
> >
> > Shannon didn't tell her parents about the incident on the
> > way home from the ballpark that day. She didn't want them to make
> > a scene and stop her from walking home from the softball games.
> > Parents were always overreacting and hers were the worst. It made
> > her wish she was not an only child. Maybe if she had brothers and
> > sisters, her parents wouldn't be so overprotective.
> >
> > By Thursday, Shannon had forgotten about the footsteps
> > following her.
> >
> > Her game was in full swing when suddenly she felt someone
> > staring at her. It was then that the memory came back. She
> > glanced up from her second base position to see a man watching her
> > closely.
> >
> > He was leaning against the fence behind first base and he
> > smiled when she looked at him. He didn't look scary and she
> > quickly dismissed the sudden fear she had felt.
> >
> > After the game, he sat on a bleacher while she talked to
> > the coach. She noticed his smile once again as she walked past
> > him. He nodded and she smiled back. He noticed her name on the
> > back of her shirt. He knew he had found her.
> >
> > Quietly, he walked a safe distance behind her. It was only
> > a few blocks to Shannon's home, and once he saw where she lived
> > he quickly returned to the park to get his car.
> >
> > Now he had to wait. He decided to get a bite to eat until
> > the time came to go to Shannon's house. He drove to a fast food
> > restaurant and sat there until time to make his move.
> >
> > Shannon was in her room later that evening when she heard
> > voices in the living room.
> >
> > "Shannon, come here," her father called. He sounded upset
> > and she couldn't imagine why. She went into the room to see the
> > man from the ballpark sitting on the sofa.
> >
> > "Sit down,"her father began, "this man has just told us a
> > most interesting story about you."
> >
> > Shannon sat back. How could he tell her parents anything?
> > She had never seen him before today!
> >
> > "Do you know who I am, Shannon?"the man asked.
> >
> > "No,"Shannon answered.
> >
> > "I am a police officer and your online friend, GoTo123."
> >
> > Shannon was stunned. "That's impossible! GoTo is a kid my
> > age! He's 14. And he lives in Michigan!"
> >
> > The man smiled. "I know I told you all that, but it
> > wasn't true. You see, Shannon, there are people on-line who
> > pretend to be kids; I was one of them. But while others do it to
> > injure kids and hurt them, I belong to a group of parents who do
> > it to protect kids from predators. I came here to find you to
> > teach you how dangerous it is to talk to people on-line. You told
> > me enough about yourself to make it easy for me to find you. You
> > named the school you went to, the name of your ball team and the
> > position you played. The number and name on your jersey just made
> > finding you a breeze."
> >
> > Shannon was stunned. "You mean you don't live in Michigan?"
> >
> > He laughed. "No, I live in Raleigh. It made you feel
> > safe to think I was so far away, didn't it?"
> >
> > She nodded.
> >
> > "I had a friend whose daughter was like you. Only she
> > wasn't as lucky. The guy found her and murdered her while she was
> > home alone. Kids are taught not to tell anyone when they are
> > alone, yet they do it all the time on-line. The wrong people
> > trick you into giving out information a little here and there
> > on-line. Before you know it, you have told them enough for them to
> > find you without even realizing you have done it. I hope you've
> > learned a lesson from this and won't do it again. Tell others
> > about this so they will be safe too?"
> >
> > "It's a promise!"
> >
> > That night Shannon and her Dad and Mom all knelt down
> > together and thanked God for protecting Shannon from what could
> > have been a tragic situation.
> >
> > *****NOW*****
> >
> >
> > Please send this to as many people as you can to teach
> > them not to give any information about them
> > selves. This world we live in today is too dangerous to
> > even give out your age, let alone anything else.
> >
> > EVEN FORWARD THIS TO PEOPLE WITHOUT KIDS SO THEY CAN
> > SEND IT TO FRIENDS THAT DO HAVE CHILDREN OR GRANDCHILDREN.