Chat Safety

• Never give out identifying information such as Name, Home Address, School Name, or Telephone Number in a public message such as at a chat room or on bulletin boards.
• Never send a person a picture of you without first checking with your parent or guardian.
• Never respond to messages that are:
  • Suggestive
  • Obscene
  • Belligerent
  • Threatening
  • Make You Feel Uncomfortable
• Be careful when someone offers you something for nothing, such as gifts and money. Be very careful about any offers that involve your coming to a meeting or having someone visit your house.
• Tell the room moderator if anyone is pressing you for personal information in your Private Messages. Please remember that the CONFIG button is there for you to block any posts from those that you feel uncomfortable receiving posts from.
• Never arrange a face to face meeting without telling your parent or guardian. If your parent or guardian agree to the meeting, make sure that you meet in a public place and have a parent or guardian with you.
• Remember that people online may not be who they seem. Because you can't see or even hear the person it would be easy for someone to misrepresent him- or herself. Thus, someone indicating that "she" is a "13-year-old-girl" could in reality be an older man.
• Be sure that you are dealing with someone that you and your parents know and trust before giving out any personal information about yourself via E-mail.
• Get to know your "online friends" just as you get to know all of your other friends.
• ****Note: For added safety turn off pictures and javascript when chatting.