10 Ways To Check If Your Online Friend Is A Bad Guy
By Online Security Authority on Apr 16, 2009 in Thoughts on Security
If you are lonely and you feel like chatting with someone, you are sure to find a person on the Internet who is willing to listen and let you rant all you want. There are many chat rooms, instant messengers, and even dating services that let you meet people all across the country and even the world. It is really very easy to enter into a friendship, or even something deeper, with an individual you met online.
However, before you get carried away or be swept off your feet, you first need to know if online friend is in deed whom he or she claims to be. Although there are a number of stories about online friendship and romances that develop into long-lasting real relationships, there are also many stories on how people got scammed, abused, and even murdered because of trusting strangers online.
Here are some ways on how you can check if your online friend is a bad person:
Nobody Is That Perfect
If you find someone who seems to be almost perfect, you have to think twice. Nobody is that good, gorgeous, sweet, talented and affectionate. He or she just got to have some flaws, even very minor ones. Just stop and consider that if someone is really that good and perfect in person, then why is he or she is in a hurry to hook up with you online?
If your online friend is exerting too much effort to be perfect in your eyes, then you should start questioning his or her motive.
Read Between The Lines
It is really easier to spot unscrupulous individuals in person than online because in real life, you can rely on his or her gestures, facial expressions, body movements and intonations to determine if he or she is telling the truth. On the cyber world, however, you can only rely on the words that are used and the manner by which he or she reacted on certain issues.
If you want to spot if your online friend is a fraud, then you need to carefully hang on to his or her every words. Try to determine your friend’s reaction to racism, euthanasia, religion, divorce and other issues that are important to you. A bad person or a fraudster will find it difficult to fabricate a lie if you ask about a variety of topics.
Too Hot To Handle
If you do not want to be a victim of sexual predators or peddlers, you need to be conscious about sexually explicit messages. If your online friend is too hot or horny, he or she might just be trying to lure you to visit his or her porn site. If a person truly respects you, he or she would not make sexual passes at you.
Rants About Almost Everything
If you come across a person who has plenty of negative things to say about other people, you need to be careful on how you deal with that person. If all your online pal do is rant about work, boss, government, or even any person who he or she happens to come across with, you should start to back off. If your cyber friend can say bad things to almost everybody and anything, then what makes you think that you will be not be a recipient of such lashing?
Likes To Live Dangerously
If your online friend brags about breaking the law, even the most harmless law, then it shows that that person has a problem with respect and the authority. You do not want to hang out with a person who cannot follow rules.
Asks For Money
The number one sign that your online friend is a fraudster or con artist is when he or she starts to ask you for money. That person will probably chat with you harmlessly for several months before asking for small favors, which will eventually lead to big amounts.
Wants Personal Information
Another red flag is when your cyber friend starts to get curious about your personal information, such as your age, income bracket, real name, address, telephone number and even financial data. These things are not really relevant to your friendship, so why ask?
Loves To Bully
If you feel you are being harassed or bullied, even just slightly, then there is a big probability that your online friend may be aggressive and bad. It is not really worth it to hang out with cyber bullies.
Professes His Or Her Love In Just A Few Days
If your cyber buddy professes love in just a few days or weeks of chatting, or if he or she expresses desire for you even if you two haven’t meant, then there is something fishy in the picture. People who fall in love fast are dangerous because they can also fall out of love in an instant too. Furthermore, many unscrupulous individuals use love to get what they need from their victims.
Forces You To Meet In Person
If your Internet pal is very insistent in meeting you in person, then you need to stop and think about his or her motives. If you feel being forced and bullied into doing something, then that can already be considered as harassment. Being forceful is usually a sign that a person can be very dangerous.
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