Be safe online

Are you a member of MySpace? How about Facebook? LiveJournal? Xianz? Most teens 
today are a member of some social networking site. While they may seem like a 
lot of fun, they also pose a risk to your safety. This does not mean that you 
can't join any of these online social networking sites. It just means that you 
need to be careful about how you use them. Here are some tips to keep yourself 
safe when you use the Internet:

1. Be Truthful
When a site asks you how old you are, you need to be honest. 
There are reasons that these sites ask for your age. They want to make sure you 
are appropriate for the site. If you have questions, you need to talk to your 
parents. You should also let your parents know that you are joining a site like 
MySpace, Live Journal, or Xianz. They can offer you help and advice about being 
safe.

2.  Be Private

One of the things that amazed parents and professionals the most 
was the amount of information a person could get from a simple profile. You want 
to reveal some things about yourself, that's understandable, but you do not want 
to post information that will allow someone to find your location. This means 
avoiding posts that tell people where you hang out, your schedule, last name, 
and more.

3. Do You Use Pictures?
When the profiles of students were studied, there were 
some visual cues that could be used by a predator to find you. For instance, do 
you have pictures on your site where you are wearing school logos? How about 
friends messaging you using your last name? Got something on there about your 
youth group and what time you meet? Those are all easy ways for you to be found 
by a stranger.

4. Stay Private

One way to make yourself a little more private is to only use 
sites that allow you to "lock out" anyone that does not have your permission to 
view your site. MySpace and Xianz both have that capability. People need to 
request permission to view your profile. If you do not know that person, do not 
allow him or her to have access. Even if they say they are a "friend of a 
friend," you should really know the person you are talking to online.

5. Don't Meet in Person

Christians are supposed to witness to people. This 
means inviting them to go to church and discussing your faith with people you 
may have just met. Yet the anonymity of meeting people online is a little more dangerous. You need to be very, very 
careful. If you do feel like inviting that person to church, you should discuss 
it with your parents and only go with friends.

6.  Get Rid of Bad Comments

As a Christian you need to live up to a different 
standard, but it doesn't mean you live in a vacuum. You probably have 
non-Christian friends that are not as appropriate about their posts in your comments section. Even though they are 
non-Christian, it does not look good for you to have those comments on your 
profile. Also, if you see something too revealing in your comments section, you 
should delete it right away.