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Chat not Scream |
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Cyber Space predators are a rapidly growing breed - how can a teen stay safe and sound?
In the book Katie.com, Katie Tarbox tells her story of a cyber stalking that
ended in molestation. Katie met her molestor in an
AOL chat room for teens. She thought he
was 23, a regular dream guy. In a matter of months Katie fell in love.
She was 13 when "Mark" coaxed her in to a face to face meeting. While on a school
field trip, at which her mother was a chaperone, Katie slipped away from her
group for a secret meeting with "Mark" her teen dream guy. "Mark" was in fact, a
41 year old man with a history of luring girls out of cyberspace and in to his clutches.
Lucky for Katie, she didn't keep her date as big a secret as "Mark" wanted her to.
She told her roommate everything including "Mark's" room number. When Katie's mom
discovered she was missing, the friend came clean and inadvertently saved Katie.
Katie's mom banged on the hotel room door with two police officers at her side.
"Mark" was arrested and Katie was saved, but it was a bitter sweet rescue. Although it
could have been worse, Katie was still molested. She shares her whole ordeal in her
book.
It is all a reminder that cyber space is a real place with real threats. You are only
as safe as you are smart. You may think that nothing bad can happen to you, but
every one of these girls felt exactly the same at one time. In order to keep yourself
well protected obey basic internet safety rules and always keep identifying features to yourself.
Being discreet, even elusive, is the only way to keep "cyber weirdos" at bay.
Stay safe! Trust no one!!
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