Stay Safe Online
Going online is definitely fun, but it's important that you know how to stay safe.
FORWARDS / CHAIN LETTER EMAILS
You've probably gotten a forward before. It's an email that's been sent to hundreds of people and has some cheesy message in it about sending it to fifty people in the next two seconds or your life will be over as you know it. Well, that's all a bunch of lies. These chain letters typically have a virus in them of some kind (usually the kind you can't notice until it's too late) and by sending it to all your friends, you're simply spreading a virus across the internet. Another type of chain letter is the kind that wants your sympathy- and money. They say some family in a foreign country is starving and needs your money or needs you to send out the letter to a hundred people. Complete lies. Just delete any chain letters you get, and if an email title seems suspiciously like a chain letter, don't even open it.
PERSONAL INFO
Never give out personal information to sites you don't trust. Of course, if you're shopping at Ebay, you have to give your address and whatnot to get what you bought, but don't give out information about yourself to most sites. This means you shouldn't reveal your address (or even city), age, or full name, as well as anything that could identify you. Think about it. If you have a Myspace or other site, your friends already know everything about you. Why do they even need to see pictures of you? Some people will use the information you provide to find you in real life, which is not good.
ANONYMOUS?
As disappointing as it is, there's no such thing as being anonymous online. Even if you post something as 'Anonymous', people can still get a hold of your ip address (internet protocol address- it's unique to your computer) and find out who you are, if they were so inclined. That means any time you've posted something rude, the person you sent it to can find out exactly who sent it.
DELETING THINGS
Another disappointing thing about the internet, whenever you post something, it's out there forever. Even if you delete it, there are internet archives that keep EVERYTHING. It's really important to think things through before you type them. If you're angry at someone, don't respond to them right away. Say whatever you want out loud, then you should be able to type something that's not straight from a sailor's mouth. ;) Some job agencies even check the archives to see what you've written and what sites you've visited, and if you're as trust-worthy as you say you are.
BLOGS
Along with the not posting the first thing that comes out of your mouth, blogging is also something to watch for safety. Some people say 'If I know you in real life, don't read my blog!' Well, that doesn't work. Those people are definitely going to read your blog, especially after you told them not to. Even if you don't give anyone the link, they'll find your blog. That means you shouldn't trash people online, because they're going to find it and it's going to be in the internet archive forever. There was even a news article once about someone who blogged about what a dumb boss they had. Guess what? They were fired as soon as the boss was told about the blog.
After reading this article, you might be a little freaked out about ever going online again, but as long as you don't give out personal info, don't type something you'll later regret, and you don't fall for chain letters, you'll be perfectly okay. =)
