Who Is It?
By twoey68
@twoey68 (13627)
United States
August 20, 2007 7:53am CST
Do you ever wonder about who you are talking to online? Since we never actually see the person we are talking to and ppl can be anyone they want to be online...does it ever make you wonder?
Hubby's ex-wife stalked us for years and sometimes I still find myself wondering if who I'm talking to is really who I think it is.
I guess for this reason I tend to be very careful who I talk to. What about you? Have you ever pretended to be someone other than who you are online?
AT PEACE WITHIN
4 people like this
9 responses
@evanpoe (122)
• United States
21 Aug 07
For the past 10 years I've met several people online and, yeah...there are a lot of fakes. I can't say I've ever met anyone pretending to be someone drastically different than who they claim to be, but I play it safe and use your intuition. Talk to them on the phone first and when/if it comes down to it, meet them in a public place. Use your better judgement and above all else, don't get set on one way of thinking someone is as a person because you just don't know who they are til you're looking them in the eye.
1 person likes this
@twoey68 (13627)
• United States
30 Aug 07
With online friends you tend to see only what they want you to see and you don't get that first impression that you normally get when you first meet someone face to face. So it is important to use your best judgement whenever you decide to to meet the person in real life.
Thanks for posting!!
AT PEACE WITHIN
@Katlady2 (9904)
• United States
21 Aug 07
There are times that I have wondered about that myself. As for me, I am always myself no matter whether it's online or in my everyday life. I'm just very careful about giving people information about me. There are just too many weird people out there to not be cautious.
1 person likes this
@twoey68 (13627)
• United States
30 Aug 07
I know what you mean...the web is filled with weirdos just like the real world. I also notice that several ppl don't mark their profiles with male/female which always makes me wonder. I also notice alot of men with female geared avatars like butterflies, daisies, hearts things like that...things you'd normally associate with women.
Thanks for posting!!
AT PEACE WITHIN
@Marie2473 (8512)
• Sweden
20 Aug 07
I have to say that I have pretended to be someone else and I am really ashamed of it. It was actually a friend of mine who asked me to pretend to be a single girl and contact her bf on a site that he was a member of. she suspected that he was cheating - and he was. We decided to meet and instead of me she came.
I do not know if he ever found out that it was me he was talking to - however I felt really bad pretending to be someone else!
1 person likes this
@worldwise1 (14885)
• United States
20 Aug 07
That's very true, twoey. That is the reason we should all be careful to whom we communicate with while online. The members here on myLot are basically the only people I come into contact with. It used to be that people would try to chat with me via my IM. I keep it permanently set to invisible now, so I don't have that problem any more. I think that quite a few people are not who they represent themselves to be online. I always am honest about who I am because I have nothing to hide. You are right, though-you can be anyone you want to appear to be online.
1 person likes this
@twoey68 (13627)
• United States
20 Aug 07
A few years back Hubby got an IM from a woman asking for help getting started in an online business he was in. They started talking and she seemed to know exactly how he felt and what his problems were. Within a couple of weeks, she'd convinced him that she wanted him to move with her (she was a widow with 2 older daughters). He decided to go and that was that. A few days after he left, he called, it turned out the other woman was his ex-wife and their son had helped her out by coming to visit and taking all kinds of information back to her. A couple weeks later he called again and we decided to work things out. Normally I wouldn't have but I felt he had been tricked just as much as I had.
What really hit me was they had been married for 17 years...they obviously knew each other well and yet she had him completely fooled as to who she was. I couldn't believe someone would go to this extreme to try to get someone back who didn't want to be there to begin with.
Thanks For Posting!!
AT PEACE WITHIN
@flowerchilde (12529)
• United States
24 Aug 07
Yes, it does make me wonder.. and I am cautious and alwyas tell my grandaughter not to even talk to anyone online (she's only eight!) And still warn my grown up kids about the dangers.. to never, never give personal info. I've never pretended to be anyone else.. but in some groups a few years back was tempted to join as a male, as I didn't think the female posters were much taken seriously.. It was a debate/discussion grouop. I think women have proven theirselves online, and don't really come acrioss this anymore! (That's a little off topic, but couldn't help myself!)
- The online personages I am most leery of are those behind sexy pictures.. I tend to figure they're up to no good! But I think most of the folks I meet are real nice! And if we don't give away our info like address! and phone, etc, all should be well..
:)
1 person likes this
@mamasan34 (6518)
• United States
20 Aug 07
No, I can't say that I have done that. I think it is wrong to pretend to be someone your not and fool people like that. It can be a dangerous game. Yes, talking to people on the internet can be a very dangerous thing at times. You have to be very careful who you put your trust and friendship into. There are alot of people out there that are pretty crazy and have ill intentions unfortunately.
1 person likes this
@twoey68 (13627)
• United States
20 Aug 07
I remember when I first got on the internet there was a news story on the TV about a woman who had met and chatted with a man online. She decided to move on and had met someone else in person. A day or two later she found a human head on her front porch. That wigged me out.
Also there was two girls from Missouri that went to meet a man in another state that they had met online and they found them a week or so later in steel drums in his backyard where he put them, along with others, after he killed them.
I am so careful about who I talk to and meet online.
Thanks For Posting!!
AT PEACE WITHIN
@artemis432 (7474)
• Abernathy, Texas
20 Aug 07
You are so great - this is an important and timely discussion. The net is full of online predators. Just like in real life, where bad sayguys don't wear black hats or name tags that say Hi, I'm Joe and I'm a predator, we can't tell online from handles - names, profiles, age or nice posts. Anyone can be a predator and lie about htings - even what country they're in. We should excercise caution while still be polite, and even caring. Never never give out personal information, including where you work or shop or hang out.
Thank you so much twoey68 for starting such an important discussion.
@artemis432 (7474)
• Abernathy, Texas
20 Aug 07
Oh and in answer to your question, I don't pretend to be someone I'm not, I'm just careful about the details I chosse to disclose.
1 person likes this
