If you think your kids are safe on thee internet ,,, read this xx

@weemam (13372)
July 11, 2007 4:46pm CST
This was E-mailed to me by a friend tonight and I just had to post it to warn you all ,it is really scary . Put your parental controls on or watch what your kids are doing , please watch them carefully xxx EVERYONE NEEDS TO READ ALL OF THIS and HAVE 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. GoTo1 23: 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**** EVEN FORWARD THIS TO PEOPLE WITHOUT KIDS SO THEY CAN SEND IT TO FRIENDS THAT DO HAVE CHILDREN OR GRANDCHILDREN
7 people like this
26 responses
• United States
11 Jul 07
This is unbelievable. I'm now eighteen and I used to chat online with people when I was around 14. I soon realized that It was no fun to talk to people because I didn't really know them and also because some of my friends were meeting some of these people in person and I thought and told them that what they are doing is stupid. I mean I would talk but not actually meet them in person. I stopped soon after. I had better things to do like focus on school instead of talking to people i didn't know. If I wanted to talk I'll just talk to my mother or family or my friends. Thanks for sharing this.
3 people like this
@weemam (13372)
11 Jul 07
I have 2 granddaughters( 2 boys and 2 girls grandchildren) the girls are 18 and 13 and I have just sent this to the 13 year old and asked her to post it on to all her friends , it is really scary isn't it xxxxx
2 people like this
• United States
11 Jul 07
It is. I'm glad that when I talked to the people I never gave them my name. One of my best friend nicknamed me Ayumi Takashi because I love the Japanese culture a lot and becasue we were writting a comic book. Since then that's the only name i've used online and other places. Good luck to you and your grandchildren.
3 people like this
@weemam (13372)
11 Jul 07
thank you and the same to you I hope you enjoy the site , I do xx
2 people like this
@tinamwhite (3252)
• United States
12 Jul 07
Thanks so much for posting this...it is an extremely important warning and people do need to pay attention to what they say and to whom...especially on-line...this world has many people who prey on the young and unsuspecting people in the world and many times they are so good at it that they know how to make a person feel comfortable thereby letting their guard down...
@weemam (13372)
12 Jul 07
it is so sad that we have to have things like this happen , but even if this isn't a true story It so easily could have been , I think we need something like this to shock xxxxx
@emisle (3822)
• Ireland
11 Jul 07
Kids these days really expose themselves to potential predators. I think if there is a computer with internet access in the house than parents need to press home the dangers that are out there so that their kids are careful and are wise to not giving out their details to anyone.
3 people like this
@weemam (13372)
11 Jul 07
I don't need parental controls here , but when my granddaughter is here we sit at the PC together or it goes on and she is 13 and very smart but you never know as this discussion proves pal xxx
2 people like this
@aprilgrl (4460)
• United States
12 Jul 07
I remember reading that somewhere. Yeah Kids do need to be careful and some parents don't watch what their kids are doing online these days and know wonder so many kids are missing each day. When my daughter was younger. Thanks for the reminders for others to read this.
3 people like this
@weemam (13372)
12 Jul 07
I passed it on to my 13 yr old granddaughter and asked her to pass it on and I know she will read it first xx
@charms88 (7538)
• Philippines
11 Jul 07
This is very interesting as well as as a known reality that we need to face. Internet is really not a safe haven for us to store too much of our information. I rarely give out my name and only one friend knows the real me. I was always skeptic about online friends. We are all talking to a completely virtual, faceless people in the Internet. Who knows, you might not be talking to a bunny. I may be a guy too. We can be anyone here. Thank you for sharing this one. I never regretted my decision not to let my girls use the Internet. :)
@weemam (13372)
12 Jul 07
It really is scary pal isn't it , I have met quite a few of my online friends , always with a family member and I have been so lucky as they have all turned out lovely people and still friends now xxx
@mummymo (23706)
11 Jul 07
I have read that before! That is why I made my boy remove anyone from messenger he didn't personally know! I know it sounds hypocritical but we have to protect our kids! Thank you for sharing this story with us all wee! xxx
3 people like this
@weemam (13372)
12 Jul 07
I would have done the same thing sweetheart , he knows you do these things because you love him xxxxxxxxx
• United States
16 Jul 07
Thank you weemam that is a very enlightening e-mail. It just shows that just because kids do not give the address or phone number they are safe. They are not. Thank you for sharing this.
1 person likes this
@weemam (13372)
16 Jul 07
Just shows you though how fly some of these people can be xx
@Katlady2 (9904)
• United States
15 Jul 07
I posted this same thing a while back, only mine was under the title about MYSPACE. But believe me, I'm not griping at you about your post. I think the more people get to read this, the more it gets the point across about the dangers of the internet for kids. And I'm sure people pointed out to you, as they did to me that Snopes claimed this circulating email to be a false one. But so what! It serves as an excellent lesson about being careful and cautious, and for parents to be more diligent about keeping an eye on their kids' habits on the internet. Thank you so much for posting this hon. Between the two of us, I hope we got to a lot of people.
1 person likes this
@weemam (13372)
16 Jul 07
thanks pal xxxx
@weemam (13372)
15 Jul 07
I do search pal but I don't often find things , It is where to look and how it is worded too , I did have snopes pointed out to me , I answered just as you said , " even if this story ISN'T true it could so easily have been and I still think it well worth sharing , You know I wouldn't sleal your glory pal , thanks xxxx
1 person likes this
@Katlady2 (9904)
• United States
16 Jul 07
Pfffffttttt! Steal my glory....heck, I look at it as sharing it. LOL And I think you said exactly what I said about the snopes thing. See? Great minds DO think alike!
1 person likes this
@Debs_place (10520)
• United States
11 Jul 07
Hey Weeman, this is a good one, though ficticious for the most part, it is an accurate way that people can find someone or put together the information they need to stalk someone. This is a valid warning.
3 people like this
@weemam (13372)
11 Jul 07
Thanks Debs , it will be worth it if it only saves even one youngster , I have sent it to my granddaughter to send to all her friends xx
2 people like this
@mimatexas (1818)
• United States
20 Jul 07
I forwarded this to my friends and family. Thank you very much for the advise. We should be careful, even grown-ups not to send too much personal information on the internet.
@weemam (13372)
20 Jul 07
I agree with you my friend we must keep them safe xx
1 person likes this
@raydene (9871)
• United States
16 Jul 07
This is a great discussion Wee and may save a child somewhere. Our kids are just sitting ducks in the gallery of pretators in internet land.It is scary to think how many kids rush home to talk online! Thanks Sweets for a great discussion. xoxoxoxoxo
1 person likes this
@weemam (13372)
16 Jul 07
thank you sis for taking the time to resspond , I think we need stories like this to shock some of the kids into believing how bad things can be xxxx
@Lovett (464)
• India
15 Jul 07
THanks for your wonderful post. I have no friends who have children , so cannot send it to children, but I wl definitely tell it to any of my friends who chat on the net..Thanks for being so considerate!
1 person likes this
@weemam (13372)
16 Jul 07
If only it helps just one kid its worth passing it on pal xx
• India
16 Jul 07
These is so terriable, and the teens must be careful, when they do online chatting.. They must not fall as an easy prey..
1 person likes this
@weemam (13372)
16 Jul 07
I just hope we let them all know with something like this , it is really frightening xx
@tonymark (25)
• Kenya
16 Jul 07
Scary stuff. I will definitely warn all parents with kids, and also the kids themselves. Its so unfortunate that they are so innocent about all this. One thing though, it would be irresponsible for a parent not to give their kid enough attention such that they turn to the internet for it.
@weemam (13372)
16 Jul 07
I think that most of us have our kids and grandkids well warned but there are always going to be the ones that don't and hopefully they read something like this xx
@lingli_78 (12822)
• Australia
12 Jul 07
yeahhh... the internet is a very scary thing if it is used wrongly... thanks for sharing this story with us... i will definitely tell my friends about this especially those who have children... once again, thanks...
1 person likes this
@weemam (13372)
12 Jul 07
Thank you so much it is a thing we really all should pass on pal xx
• India
12 Jul 07
Thank you so much for sharing such a wonderfully educating story and thanks also to the original writer for giving a happy ending to the story. By the time I had gone to the part where the man goes to the fast-food joint to kill time, my head had started swirling and my breath almost stopped in anticipation of impending danger. My God! The story is so correct, even we adults make the same mistakes often (at least I do, though I don’t like chatting much). Often its disgusting to reveal your identity and out of habit, we pour out our personal details. I’ll definitely be more careful from now on and will definitely pass this on to as many acquaintances of mine as possible. Thanks once again!
1 person likes this
@weemam (13372)
12 Jul 07
I think we should pass it on to as many people as possible , thank you xxx
@diannebcrs (1549)
• Philippines
12 Jul 07
wow, thanks for sharing that. yeah i think we have to be constantly cautious about these things. most of the time though we don't pay much attention to it and may just give out more info than we should have. we have to constantly remind ourselves and our friends about these things.
1 person likes this
@weemam (13372)
12 Jul 07
I agree my friend , it is so easy especially for children to give things away in chat without realizing it xx
@stephcjh (38473)
• United States
13 Jul 07
Thanks for sending this message out. I hope alot of members will read it in its entirity. I tell my daughter these things all of the time and i also do not allow her to go into chat rooms and such when she is online. I do not let her chat to other players either when she plays an online game. It is so scary these days and children and parents do not take heed to what is happening until it is too late.
@weemam (13372)
13 Jul 07
I ueed to be on Play and Win before the started charging for it , I let my 13 year old granddaughter play with me but only with friends and they knew she was there with me , it was usually a group of four of as and we knew each other well , She only got to play with me sitting beside her , she played and I typed lol xxx
@mdarma (868)
• Singapore
13 Jul 07
Woh!! It looks like one of the movies in the TV. It sound frightening, that from a simple converstion, giving innocent imfo can be dangerous. My, My we have to be very careful. Thanks for sharing it with us, you have made us more alert on such situation. Thank you again
1 person likes this
@weemam (13372)
13 Jul 07
Thank you my friend , even if it weren't a true story , I think it is a good thing to let kids read xx
@archie20 (39)
• United States
12 Jul 07
Oh my God .Poor kids. I will tell about this to all i know.
1 person likes this
@weemam (13372)
12 Jul 07
Hi Archie and welcome to My Lot xx