Should I agree to meet someone I met on the internet?

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   GirlSmarts on Sep 14, 2012 Reply

   Extreme caution must be used when agreeing to meet someone whom contact is primarily established with online. The person wanting to meet with you may seem harmless or even desirable, but the fact of the matter is that it is very easy for that persona to be fabricated.

   The person you have been talking to online for months, or even years, could be someone entirely different in real life. Just as in the non-cyber world, some people you encounter online might try to take advantage of you financially or physically.

   The web allows for complete anonymity, so someone posing as a 17 year old may really be 30. As a result, responding to violent messages from people you do not know, displaying leud pictures online and/or agreeing to meet in person with someone you met over the Internet is extremely dangerous, as this can result in sexual assault or even murder—there are countless instances where predators have hurt victims online who were completely unaware of their true intentions.

   So we do not recommend that you agree to meet someone that you meet on the internet. If you still plan to meet someone anyway, make sure your get permission from your parent or guardian and insist that the first in-person contact be in a public place, with many friends where you would feel comfortable. Also have a planned exit-strategy if things do not happen the way you expect.

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