Keeping Kids Safe Online

This was an email forwarded to me by my sister. It is a good reminder for all of us:

Dear Family & Friends:


This is not meant to scare you, but worth the read and a caution for children.


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 conv ersations 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!< I> '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 nigh t 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****PLEASE FORWARD THIS,EVEN TO PEOPLE WITHOUT KIDS,
SO THEY CAN SEND IT TO FRIENDS THAT DO HAVE CHILDREN OR GRANDCHILDREN!