With the GOOD comes the BAD! - entry #1
Instant messaging has become super popular over the last few years. Now anyone, who is anyone, has a Hotmail, G-mail, or a Yahoo e-mail address. When someone signs up for e-mail, usually they are also signing up for MSN, YIM (Yahoo! instant messenger) or chat room access. Many teenagers use MSN/YIM and chat rooms to stay in touch with friends or family. This is a great way to stay in contact with loved ones. It’s free and very easy to use. All you need is internet connection!
Instant messaging can be safe - if teenagers only add people they know off the internet. When teenagers make online friends that is when bad things can happen. Although teenagers - or even people in general - have heard a lot about online predators, no one thinks it could ever happen to them. The truth is it could happen to them, it could happen to anyone!
Making friends online is a very tricky thing. They could be really nice people who should be trusted, but due to all those crazy people out there surfing the web, no one can be trusted. There is no way to tell who you’re talking to on a computer. People can be whoever they want to! A 40 year old man could be an 18 year old boy – or even an 18 year old girl! People can make up their appearances; they could say they’re tall and slim, when really they’re short and fat.
Over time, a teen might come to believe all of their online friend’s lies, and think they’ve become the best of friends. Some teens even come to the conclusion that it is safe to meet up with their online friend. Meeting up doesn’t always go bad; sometimes people are actually telling the truth about who they are. This could lead to lifelong friendships or even relationships! Yet, things don’t always have happy endings. A teen’s online friend isn’t always friendly. When you meet up with your online friend, it may turn out that they aren’t anything like you thought they’d be. It could even be worse than just an awkward situation. This person could be a kidnapper, murderer, rapist, or a crazy person. Many people – especially teenage girls – have met up with men they met in chat rooms or YIM/MSN and ended up dead or really traumatized.
I’m not saying that if you make a friend online only bad things can come from it. Most of the people online are probably really nice, and nothing bad would happen if you were to meet them. Yet, there are people out there online who are disturbed and bad things would happen if you were to meet up with them. So, all I am saying is that it’s better to be safe than sorry. Don’t meet up with your online friends. If you really like making new friends online, then just don’t give out any personal information and don’t get together with them!
4 Comments:
A common issue...
I can't say I haven't had my share of "online buddies" in the past.
It's good to take advantage of the fact that by using the internet, you can connect with people that you would've never met in your entire lifetime because they might live somewhere else in Canada, for example.
Then again, it's bad that the wrong people take advantage of the fact that you've never met that person in real life and can pose as soemthing they're not.
I guess the key to having "online buddies" is letting them know what they need to know, if you will.
For example, you could tell them you like the color red or dislike a certain type of music and on the other hand, you don't tell them your age, your phone number, etc.
You've also got to think about what your online buddy thinks y'know? You MAY know that YOU'RE what you say you are, but is your online buddy sure? It's kinda interesting when you think about it.
-AJ
Hey Amy!! !Your blog is coming along great. I really like the banner. Anyways, onto your first journal entry…
You covered a lot about IMing, instant messaging, and meeting people online. I really like how you explained about how we can’t trust who we meet online and that they can turn out to be anyone. I personally get paranoid about anyone I meet online before I know them in real life first because of the very reasons you covered. They could be anyone and could’ve lied about who they are.
The advice you give at the end is harsh but true. People shouldn’t risk meeting people they’ve met online no matter how much they seem to think they know the person. The fact is that we have no REAL way of knowing who is at the other end of that computer.
Anyway, good job Amy on the first journal entry and I really like the picture you posted with it. Looks really cool and goes with your blog.
I do agree that IM programs can be very dangerous, especially when you do have online friends.
I think with such a dangerous and freedom-oriented program like MSN, you should stick to people you know offline. If you do have online friends, you should always be aware of the dangers, and always be careful.
However, like you said, IM does allow you to connect easily with family members across the globe easily. It really does only take internet access - it's very simple.
Awesome blog! Great job. Nice banner, also. =)
-Danielle~*
<33
hey amy, you did a really good job on your entry. you used alot of insight and it had effect. i can see that you put alot of thought in to this. Good Job!
Liane
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