Message boards and online forums can be a lot of fun, and can be very useful. They allow for the opinions, experiences, and knowledge of others to be shared online so that the answer to many questions will be much more readily available in online searches. It allows us to benefit from the wisdom of others, and for us to share our own wisdom when we have it. Message boards are also a great place for many people to meet new friends and talk to new people. However, as with everywhere online, it is important to take certain precautions so as not to put yourself in harm’s way – even when things seem completely harmless.
As message boards are quite public, anyone is able to join, read, and participate. This means that anyone has access to what you say and any information that you disclose about yourself – even if that information was not intended for them.
There are also sub-forms of message boards called private message boards, which are created so that only the invited people may participate. This gives participants a false sense of security. For one thing, it isn’t entirely difficult for unwanted visitors to view what is being said. For another, just because you are chatting privately with someone, it doesn’t mean that they are any more trustworthy than they were when they were on the public message board with you.
When you are chatting on any kind of message board – personal or private – there are certain tips that you will want to follow. These include:
• Never trust anyone you meet online. You can enjoy their company, you can talk with them, but it doesn’t mean that you need to trust them and tell them anything personal about yourself. Remember that the people you talk to online could be anyone – who they say they are or not.
• Avoid meeting people you’ve only met online. If it is very important for you to meet someone in real life that you only know from message boards, make sure that you meet in a very public place, and that people you know are aware of the fact that you’ll be meeting this person, where, and when they should expect your return.
• Keep different screen names at different message boards so that people can’t track you from one place to the next.
• Avoid using your real name as a handle, or disclosing your real name at all.
• Keep all personal details off your profile.