Shannon could hear the footsteps behind her as she walked toward
home. The thought of being followed made her heart beat faster.
"You're being silly," she told herself, "no one is following you."
To be safe, she began to walk faster, but the footsteps kept up
with her pace. She was afraid to look back and she was glad she
was almost home. Shannon said a quick prayer, "God please get me home safe." She
saw the porch light burning and ran the rest of the way to her house.
Once inside, she leaned against the door for a moment...relieved to
be in the safety of her home. She glanced out the window to see if
anyone was there. The sidewalk was empty.
After tossing her books on the sofa she decided to grab a snack and
get on line. There she could talk to strangers without being afraid.
After all, no one knew who she really was and couldn't hurt her.
She logged on under her screen name "ByAngel213." Checking her Buddy
List, she saw "GoTo123" was on. She sent him an instant message:
ByAngel213: Hi, I'm glad you are on! I thought someone was following
me home today. It was really weird!
GoTo123: You watch too much TV. Why would someone be following you?
Don't you live in a safe neighborhood?
ByAngel213: Of course I do. I guess it was my imagination 'cause I
didn't see anybody when I looked out.
GoTo123: Unless you gave your name out on line -- you haven't done
that have you?
ByAngel213: Of course not. I'm not stupid you know.
GoTo123: Did you have a softball game after school today?
ByAngel213: Yes and we won!!
GoTo123: That's great! Who did you play?
ByAngel213: We played the Hornets Their uniforms are so gross!
They look like bees.
GoTo123: What is your team called?
ByAngel213: We are the Canton Cats. We have tiger paws on our
uniforms. They are really kewl.
GoTo123: Do you pitch or what?
ByAngel213: No. I play second base. I got to go. . . My
homework has to be done before my parents get home.
I don't want them mad at me. Bye.
GoTo123: Catch you later. . . Bye.
GoTo123 decided it was time to teach Angel a lesson, one she would
never forget. He went to the member menu and began to search for her
profile.
When it came up, he highlighted it and printed it out. He took out
a pen and began to write down what he knew about Angel so far.
Her name: Shannon
Besides this information, he knew she lived in Canton. She had
just told him she stayed by herself until 6:30 every afternoon until
her parents came home from work. He knew she played softball on
Thursday afternoons on the school team and the team was named
the Canton Cats. Her favorite number 7 was printed on her jersey. He knew she was
in the seventh grade at the Canton Junior High School. She had told
him all this in the conversations they had on line. He had enough
information to find her now.
"She'll be so surprised," he thought, "she doesn't even know what
she has done."
Shannon didn't tell her parents about the incident on the way home
from the ball park that day. She didn't want them to make a scene
and stop her from walking home from the softball games. Parents were
always overreacting and hers were the worst. It made her wish she was
not an only child. Maybe if she had brothers and sisters her parents
wouldn't be so overprotective.
By Thursday, Shannon had forgotten about the footsteps following
her. Her game was in full swing when suddenly she felt someone
staring at her. It was then that the memory came back. She glanced up
from her second base position to see a man watching her closely. He was
leaning against the fence behind first base and he smiled when she
looked at him.
He didn't look scary and she quickly dismissed the fear she had
felt. After the game, he sat on a bleacher while she talked to the
coach.
She noticed his smile once again as she walked past him. He nodded,
and she smiled back. He noticed her name on back of the shirt. He knew
he had found her. Quietly, he walked a safe distance behind her. He
Didn't want to frighten her and have to explain what he was doing to
anyone.
It was only a few blocks to Shannon's home and once he saw where she
lived, he quickly returned to the park to get his car. Now he had
to wait. He decided to get a bite to eat until the time came to go
to Shannon's house. He drove to a fast food restaurant and sat there
until time to make his move.
Shannon was in her room later that evening when she heard voices in
the living room. "Shannon, come here," her father called. He
sounded upset and she couldn't imagine why. She went into the room and
saw the man from the ballpark sitting on the sofa. "Sit down," her father
began, "this man is a policeman and he has just told us a most
interesting story about you." Shannon moved cautiously to a chair
across from the man. How could he tell her parents anything? She had
never seen
him before today!
"Do you know who I am Shannon?", the man asked. "No", Shannon
answered.
"I am your on-line friend, GoTo123."
Shannon was stunned. "That's impossible! GoTo is a kid my age!
He's 14 and he lives in Michigan!"
The man smiled. "I know I told you all that, but it wasn't true.
You see Shannon, there are people on-line who pretend to be kids. I was
one of them. But, while others do it to find kids and hurt them, I
belong to a group of parents who do it to protect kids from predators.
I
came here to find you to teach you how dangerous it is to give out too
much information to people on line. You told me enough about yourself
to make it easy for me to find you. Your name, the school you went to,
the name of your ball team and the position you played. The number and
name on your jersey just made finding you a breeze."
Shannon was stunned. "You mean you don't live in Michigan?" He
laughed.
"No, I live in Raleigh. It made you feel safe to think I was so
far away, didn't it?" She nodded.
"I had a friend whose daughter was like you. Only she wasn't as
lucky. The guy found her and murdered her while she was home alone.
Kids are taught not to tell anyone when they are alone, yet they do it
all the time on-line.
The wrong people trick you into giving out information a little here
and there on-line. Before you know it, you have told them enough for
them to find you without even realizing you have done it. I hope
you've learned a lesson from this and won't do it again." "I won't,"
Shannon promised solemnly...
"Will you tell others about this so they will be safe too?" That night Shannon and her Dad and Mom sat down and said a short
prayer...being very THANKFUL that what could have been a tragic situation
turned out to be a very "educational" one !
Please send this to as many people as you can.... To teach them not to
give any information about themselves. This world we live in today
is too dangerous to even give out your age, let alone anything else. Be
safe rather than be "sorry"......
Birthday: Jan. 3, 1985 / age:13
State where she lived: North Carolina
Hobbies: softball, chorus, skating and going to the mall.
"It's a
promise!"