The internet provides many opportunities for people to take part in conversations with others and to participate in social networking. But this arena also allows people to remain anonymous when conversing with other people. While this can be beneficial for those with a shy personality, it can also be unsettling — especially while using a dating site. Chat rooms by their very nature work to bond people together, and in some cases, relationships can form which can be dangerous. To take this to an extreme, a person who is being stalked in the real world can also continue to be stalked online. There are certain actions that can be taken in the virtual world to protect against a stalker. These methods should always be combined with common sense so as to avoid any problems, no matter whether online or in the real world.
The first thing to do is avoid dating sites that might be positioned towards unsavory characters. For example, going to a chat room to talk about dogs is less likely to bring the kind of person who could be bothersome, as compared to video chat rooms where the discussion is about sexual situations or aspects outside the realm of polite conversation. This is a little bit of common sense that can be very effective.
Next, it is important to avoid revealing any personal information to others who will be in the live chat rooms. If there are newsletters or other lists that are sent out to those inhabiting the chat room, the anonymity expected in the chat room is also respected there as well. Otherwise a person with malicious intent could be provided with information that should not have been released. Should this information get out, it is important not to respond to any questionable emails that might be received — regardless of whether it seems to have come from someone from the chat room or not.
It is not necessary to share those chat rooms being entered with the general populace. It is not necessary to let others know the name of any chat room that has been entered.
Finally, it is advisable to avoid an unknown person who tries to use other means to make contact, be that instant messaging, email or any other electronic means (audio or video chat falls into this as well). The urge to respond, whether to vent or scream or just to ask to be left alone, must be avoided. The one thing that must not be done is to encourage the stalker to continue to try making contact. It is possible to ignore the person to the point where better pickings elsewhere will beckon: the person will lose interest and go to where a response will be given.
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