Internet Crime... Yes I am a-talkin' to YOU!

[Jade]

I just read an article about crimes commited b/c of the internet: rape, murder, etc. in addition to a lot of white collar type crimes.

My question is... does anyone know how easily something like this can happen?

Is there a way to protect ourselves from that sort of thing? I hate to sound paranoid but relating to my earlier thread, that would have to be one of my number ONE reasons for not becoming closer with any of you... fear... not of YOU (whomever you may be) in particular but simply fear in general.

And I don't just worry about myself; I worry about some of you as well. I become concerned when I hear that some of you who talk for maybe two weeks decide to meet in person. I realize that lit. isn't exactly a breeding ground for pschos... but I am sure we have our share just as any forum will... lurking in the shadows or whatever. (Or, as some of you have mentioned in the past some of our fellow "family members" who are "black sheep" hehe...).

Anyway, am I the only one who thinks about this stuff?
I mean, I just know self-defense... LAUREL is a kung fu master! (HA.. I'll bet you didn't know that did you?)

I truly wish this were the sort of world where we could be safe and trust one another with such matters.
I truly wish that I could believe that every woman that comes on here is really a woman and that every man really is a man... but the more I read, the more I absorb. Sure, I am an objective person and I am completely capable of figuring things out for myself, however I can't argue with statistics either.

The 2 people I talked to on the phone, ... I know that they are real, but there is still now way of really and truly KNOWING that everything they tell me is true, and so I go by how I feel.
Has my intuition failed me in the past at any point in my life? Sure.. .hell yes! But, I am giving it another chance.
(Hope I didn't hurt their feelings... you know who you are you little sweeties; This thread is not directed at you
okay?)

Okay well this is getting long... so those are some of my thoughts of the moment.
Thanks!

 

[Bobtoad777]

Yes very true a lot of crimes happen mbe interent but if you were to take the ammount of uneventful meetings verus attack meetings i am sure the percentage of bad things happening is very small

Just like when a plane crashes there is a lot of lost life but if you take the percentages of successful plane flights versus the crahses you would see your probably safer in a plane than crossing the sidewalk.

Media always like to present the bad side of the stroy and that all people ever hear and so they suspect everything the medai says as true without question

Personally I have meet about 200 people from online and only one time was a bad incident. My suggestion if you want to meet someone doit, if your afraid just do it somewheres public, me I prefer Tim Hortons.

 

[Dixon Carter Lee]

You know, Jade, as I was watching you write that through the blinds of your bedroom window, I could see the concern on your face. Hmmmm.

My sister had a relationship with a man she met on line who turned out to have lied about everything, including his name. And this was a good couple of months into a boyfriend/girlfriend thing. So, yeah, it can get creepy.

By the way, you're out of milk.

 

[Patryn]

You don't think this can happen face to face? I read an article once, figured out using a formula and the law of averages, that each and every one of us at some point in our lives, has had or will conversations with at least 2 people who have comitted murder.

I feel over the net, it is much, much easier though...it doesn't seem as "real" as when you're face to face. The only way to protect yourself, I suppose is to use your own judgement. After the fucking over I got, I doubt very seriously I'll ever meet anyone from the net again offline. Maybe that's unfair of me to judge everyone I meet online by what one person did, but it's also better safe than sorry.

 

[Sonora]

"Anyway, am I the only one who thinks about this stuff?"

No, Jade. I think about it too. It's a real concern to me. The people that I've met IRL I was able to verify their existance by things like being listed on a university website or their work email, etc. True, I didn't know their intentions, but I did feel better about it knowing that I was meeting ******, asst. prof, or ******, FTC lawyer.


"has had or will conversations with at least 2 people who have comitted murder."

Well, I know one for sure and I say that another committed murder, but the grand jury called it self-defense.



[Edited by Sonora on 10-13-2000 at 04:20 PM]

 

[Svedish_Chef]

The problem is you ain't talking to me, babe

I am worried about meeting people in real life... generally let alone off the internet!

But since I am crazy enough to want to meet some of you, I am going to put myself out there in the hope that my 'friends' that I have met here find it in their hearts to not get so scared at the last minute that here I am waiting at some foreign airport for noone to arrive.

It scares me that I might runn into a bunch of wierdos... then I remember I am a wierdo so it is all
relative I spose.

So anyone who has seen my picture on here... please dont kill me I cant handle the pressure



Crazy but true... thats me

Da chef

 

[wolfie69]

Take lots of time....

Jade, you are right if you are not careful you can give away a lot more info about yourself than you realize.

I was listening to a radioo (morning) show a few weeks back. These DJ's had "picked up" a lady in a chat room who wanted to have phone sex. After a short time chatting she gave her home phone number. While on the air, in less that 20 minutes they reverse searched her phone number, came up with her address, her husbands name, where he worked, who her nearest neighbors were, her social security number and much more! That was less than 20 minutes.

They called her back and put a scare into her.

My advice is to take time, lots of it. The few people I have met from the net, I have talked to for a long time before I met. I guess I think this way.... someone can fool you over the short haul but over a long period, the lies tend to fall apart and reveal themselves.

I mean when you stop to think about it... when you meet someone in a bar, or at the Library, how much do you know about them til time passes ....

and Jade... you can trust me.... I AM NOT an axe murderer.....

 

[Laurel]

If you met a guy in a bar, you wouldn't immediately believe and trust everything he said. The Internet can be a starting point, but until you've met the person and verified what you've been told, you should be wary. Just use common sense and you should do fine. The good experiences far outnumber the bad as far as Net relationships go - just like in RL.

BTW, Miz Jade, I rely much more heavily on my O-Mega 150,000-volt stun gun than I do my rather mediocre Choy Li Fut Kung Fu skills. If you don't believe me, come up behind me on a dark corner sometime - it's shocking! And girls, stun guns are the way to go. You can't accidentally put a bullet in someone you love (including yourself), and you don't have to try and aim pepper spray in their eyes.

 

[Ezzy]

The good experiences far outnumber the bad as far as Net relationships go - just like in RL.

So what are you saying about meeting Xander?

EZ http://smilecwm.tripod.com/cwm2/sleep.gif

 

[Laurel]

Well, I didn't introduce him to my stun gun, if that's what you're asking.

Seriously tho...Xander's damn cool.

 

[Ezzy]

Yup...

was only joking.

EZ http://smilecwm.tripod.com/cwm2/sleep.gif

 

[Thor's Hammer]

It is scary

I have rattled around the on-line world for about six years. I have met only one person from on-line and we have been married for almost five years (but that is another story).

A President was fond of quoting a Russian proverb, "Trust, but verify." That is the best advice. There are many ways that one can backtrack and find a real identity, including the phone/DJ approach listed above. There are just enough weirdos and phony people about to be dangerous.

I have an on-line acquaintance (woman) who was into phone sex (never me lol). She was tangled up with this guy and then decided to break it off. He got her address, neighbor's addresses, and sent flyers by US Mail listing her phone and address - inviting people to call for "really good phone sex." At last reading, her marriage was still alive, although her husband did not seem to be thrilled with her "entertainment." (There are kids too).

I have many real anecdotal stories like this, but they have generally the same theme. The message - be VERY careful. I'm a cynic and a good judge of people, but we ALL can be fooled. And, there are some really cruel people on-line that delight in inflicting pain - using the anonymity of the medium as a shield. I have prattled on enough - be careful.

 

[teresafannin]

You have to be very careful whenever meeting new people. I have met people from 2 of the other boards I go to & we have become very good friends. As I said before, one group is all women but the other group is a survivors of murder group & is made of up both men & women. If I were to meet anyone from the internet or RL, I would take a lot of precautions. Because I have been willing to talk about the murder of my son & get involved with advocacy programs, I am somewhat recognized in my city. I knew when I started to speak out, it would mean some loss of privacy. The internet works much the same way. I never give my address or home phone, my job has allowed me to give that number if necessary. I agree with Laurel, the good experiences far outweigh the bad, at least in my experience.

 

[Xander]

Well, I didn't introduce him to my stun gun, if that's what you're asking.

Seriously tho...Xander's damn cool.

Ditto Laurel.....Ditto.