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An Internet Chat Room is an online meeting-place for people to communicate. Users log on using an anonymous log-on name and type in messages which appear either in public - where the message can be seen onscreen by everyone else logged in to the chat room - or through a private message or instant message that is one-to-one and seen only by the other person.
Users may be able to use voice messaging and talk in real time through a microphone, or even use a video link via a web cam, allowing people to have live conversations with people from all around the world.
One third of UK households are now online. More than 6 million children from the age of 7 to 16 surf the internet and use the hundreds of chat rooms now available across the web. Although this is usually a safe and enjoyable experience, it makes sense to be aware of the possible dangers and pitfalls.
Most Chat Rooms have no form of age verification, so users can pretend to be any age they choose.
This could allow someone who wishes to harm a child to cultivate a relationship in order to make contact offline, perhaps by pretending to be supportive and sympathetic.
Rachel O'Connell, of the Cyberspace Research Unit, University of Lancashire says: "Once they've selected the victim, there's a friendship forming phase - 'you sound like a nice person, wanna chat?' Then there's a move from the public Chat Room to a private, one-to-one Chat Room where they communicate with kids and move on to a relationship forming phase - 'what bands do you like, what class are you in, how many brothers and sister do you have?'"
Rachel O’Connell: "They want to know who else uses the computer - 'where is it located, make sure this is our secret, don't make copies of conversations'. And these kinds of probing questions can be couched in subtle ways like 'is it easy for you to get online or are your brothers and sisters always trying to get online?' But basically what these guys seems to be doing is conducting some kind of risk assessment, trying to get an understanding of the likely risk of detection.
Then they move on to the exclusivity phase - 'I love you, I trust you, do you trust me?' That perfectly primes the situation for moving into the sexual phase. That's where they introduce questions of a sexual nature about the child's sexual development, about their feelings about their own sexuality. The guys who intend to meet the child offline are essentially grooming the child. If the child doesn't acquiesce they'll try to coerce the child to take it further."
As responsible parents or guardians you would never leave a child alone in a strange area, let them visit a city unsupervised, let them enter adult-only shops or clubs or meet a total stranger.
Hilary Benn, former Home Office minister, said: "Parents can play a role in making their children aware that strangers on the internet may not always be who they say they are."
Rachel O’Connell: "Make sure your children use a Chat Room that allows them to save copies of their conversations, that has a Report Abuse facility, whereby you can contact a moderator."
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Site computers in an area where it is easy to monitor what your child is doing - if possible in a family room like the living room. |
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Discourage children from using headphones whilst using the computer as they may be listening in private to inappropriate conversations. |
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Become familiar with the internet and the services or sites your child uses. |
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Encourage them to come to you if they see or read anything on the internet which upsets them. |
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Get to know their on-line friends in the same way you would their other friends. |
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Get to know the language your child uses, there are a lot of short cuts for instance, h8 for hate, u for you, RU for are you etc. |
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If your child arranges to meet an on-line friend ensure it is in public place with a responsible adult present. |
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If in doubt, contact the police. |
If you think your teenager is too savvy or streetwise to get themselves into danger, it is worth noting that a survey found around one in 20 of children aged between seven and 16 admitted seeing something on the web that upset or embarrassed them.
GetNetWise offers many tools that may fit your family's needs and values and which you can use to guide your children to safe and rewarding online experiences.
It’s easy to be misled by so-called online friends you can’t see, but it’s just as easy to be safe, using simple guidelines:
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Remember, everyone you meet online is a stranger, even though they might seem like a friend. |
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Always stay in public areas of chat rooms and where there are other people around. |
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When you would like to communicate with someone make it clear that you will discuss this online friendship with your parents. |
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Always use a nickname and do not give out personal contact details or any other information that could be used to identify you, such as information about your family, where you live or the school you go to.
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Never meet up with someone you have met online unless accompanied by an adult. |
As long as you use common sense and use the internet safely you should not be at risk.
Childnet International
Thinkyouknow
Chatdanger
Visit UKOrbit's Consumer & Advice Centre for further help and information.
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