My name is Parry Aftab. I am a lawyer specializing in Internet privacy and security law and head WiredSafety.org. WiredSafety.org is the world's largest Internet safety and help group, run entirely by unpaid volunteers from 76 countries around the world. We promote safer and smarter use of interactive technologies and provide education, expertise and help to people of all ages online.

We are working with Bebo to help make sure that their users know what they need to know to protect themselves in cyberspace and enjoy the site. Bebo is a social networking site. "Social Networking" is when blogs meet community. You can share your likes (and dislikes), your expertise (or lack of it), communicate with friends (and strangers) and express yourself. It's lots of fun.

Bebo is dedicated to making their site fun, innovative and safe for its users. But no matter how careful a site is, whenever lots of people hang out online, it's inevitable that some things will go wrong. Some people forget their manners and smart behavior when they're online. They may do this thinking they can't be discovered or held accountable. They may think they are invulnerable or not realize the risk involved. Sometimes they don't think at all.

While Bebo can help address problems and abuses reported to them (click 'Report Abuse' on the members' profile), it ultimately is up to us to protect ourselves in cyberspace (and up to parents to protect their children). We will help you learn how to do that. Expect many more guides coming soon. We're typing and coding as fast as we can. :)

The problems encountered in social networking or other anonymous online communities typically fall into three categories:

• ID theft, fraud and privacy abuses;
• cyberbullying, cyberstalking and harassment; and
• sexual predators, con artists and sexual exploitation.

We'll be providing more guides here at Bebo (including one for parents) shortly. Until then, here are a few safety tips that should help you stay safe at Bebo and everywhere online.

• Minimum Age at Bebo: Bebo sets the minimum age of their users at 13. They mean it. While they can't know anyone's real age, if an underage user is reported to them and Bebo can confirm from statements on their profile page that the user is underage, they will be notified. Unless they can prove that they are 13 their profile page will be deleted.
  
  
• For Parents: Parents should review my guide at WiredSafety.org about social networking and profile sites - http://www.wiredsafety.org/internet101/blogs.html. And not panic. Before you react, remember what we did when we were teenagers. If my mother could have seen what I did when she wasn't around, I would STILL be grounded! I tell parents to pick their battles. Even if their teens are using lewd and rude language on their profiles, try not to overreact. If they are posting provocative pictures, or demonstrating dangerous behaviors online, THAT's when you need to take swift action. Make sure that they are not sharing too much personal information on their profiles that is publicly viewable. Remind them to password protect anything personal and only allow their real life friends to have access. Make sure they do not communicate with strangers who try and contact them at the site. I am writing a Guide for Parents About Bebo and Social Networking. Check back soon. WiredSafety.org also is producing short videos and workshops for parents on Internet safety. You learn more about online safety and get our help by visiting WiredSafety.org.
  
  
• Keep Your Personal Information to Yourself: Never divulge any personal information that could be used to find or identify you in real life in a public forum. Password protect this information. This information includes your real name, address, telephone number, mobile number, your workplace, health club, or links to websites or other profiles that might give this information away. It also includes this kind of information about your friends and family. You may be sharing more information than you intended to by including a pic with something showing in the photo. Your personal information could be easily abused and misused. Your password can often be guessed, your identity can be stolen, it can be used by people wanting to defraud you or groom a teen into an offline meeting, or used to cyberstalk or harass you or by cyberbullies. It's your personal information...PROTECT IT!
  
  
• They are Just People You Meet Online, Not Real Friends: Remember that your online friends are not really your friends. You may like them, think they understand the real you and even connect. But, unless you know them offline, they are not real friends. They are just cyberfriends. You don't know if that cute twenty-year old guy is cute, twenty or even a guy. Treat them like strangers you encounter on a bus. Chat with them, but don't spill your guts to them. They should not be entrusted to provide you with advice about important life issues, or confided in, no matter how tempting it may be. No matter how often you have chatted with someone or how much you think you know about them, you never really know who you are chatting with online. People who are smarter than you have been tricked. Don't become a victim!
  
  
• Meeting Offline: If you ignore all my tips about this and decide you are going to meet your cyber-soul mate offline, be careful. Review WiredSafety.org's cyberdating tips first. And protect yourself. People have been killed by Internet "strangers" they meet offline, don't become the next.
  
  
• Protect Your E-Mail Address: Use a free e-mail service, such as yahoo or hotmail. That way if things go wrong, you can just delete that account and don't put your own e-mail address at risk. Also, get a good SPAM blocker program and never reply to SPAM asking to be removed from their lists. At best, your response never makes it to the sender. At worst, you are now identified as someone who reads the SPAM and are in demand by all SPAMMER lists.
  
  
• Are You Really Willing to Let Your Boss or Parents Read Your Profile: Don't post anything in public that you don't want your parents, principal, boss, university president or boyfriend or girlfriend to see. These posts tend to last longer than any of us thought they could. They are passed around and discoverable by search engines. You are never truly private when online. Remember that. Password protect everything and guard your password.
  
  
• Protect your computer: Make sure you have a good firewall and an automatically updated anti-virus program installed on your computer. While you're at it, get a good spyware or adware blocker too. And be careful about downloading or opening files sent to you, even from people you know. Many viruses masquerade as someone you know. And hacking tools and programs (such as Trojan horses) can give someone a backdoor to your computer, all your passwords and banking information.
  
  
• Protect Your Password! Keep your password to yourself and don't pick one that's easy to guess. (Keeping it on a post-it note glued to your monitor at work may not be the best way of storing your password securely.) To protect yourself from posers, come up with a secret code word for friends. If you are chatting with someone and suspect that it may be a poser, ask them for the code word. If they don't know it, log-off. (It could be a crook, their friend, roommate, or parent!) And know that the people who abuse your password the most are your close friends. So make sure you don't share it with them either.
  
  
• Get a Life! Bebo wants you to spend lots of time enjoying their site. But even they agree with me that sometimes everyone can spend too much time online. Make sure that you don't spend all of your time online. Don't give up on your offline friends or social life. I know that we are all thinner, cuter, more popular and smarter online than we are in real life. :) But spending less time online has its benefits too. (We may actually become thinner, cuter, more popular and smarter in RL. :))
  
  
• Don't be an easy mark. I am always amazed at how many otherwise intelligent people are conned online by offers that are obviously too good to be true. If something seems too good to be true, it's not true. Period. No exceptions. Does it make sense to you that the brother-in-law of the former Nigerian president found you out of the 700 million other users online to entrust with their 500 million dollars? Give me a break! Read the tip immediately above. You need a life!
  
  
• ThinkB4UClick: Before posting something online, check and make sure it says what you wanted it to say, can't be misconstrued and is being posted at the right place or sent to the right person. Think about the person on the other side. Many cyberwars start with a careless message.
  
  
• Don't bite at a "phishing" scheme. Phishing is when an ID thief sends millions of e-mails or IMs pretending to be your bank, or online service, like Paypal. They look real and try to scare you into reacting without thinking. They claim that someone has broken into your account, or that changes were made to your account. They ask you to log in using the link in the e-mail. The link takes you to their site, but you think you're at your bank's site. You type in your login and password. A page pops up telling you that your account is secure and thanking you. Your real account is accessed and emptied within minutes. If you aren't sure if the e-mail is real or not, check with the site directly by typing it into your browser. If you were already caught by a "phish" report it to your bank or the website right away.
  
  
• Take5! If something upsets you online, put down the mouse and walk away form the computer...so no one will get hurt! Take five minutes to do something you enjoy doing for five minutes to help you calm down and reply with a clear head. If you find a post that is designed to harass, cyberbully, threaten or frighten you or someone else, let us know by clicking on 'Report Abuse' on the offenders profile. It violates Bebo's terms of service and will be addressed by their abuse team. And while you're at it, treat others the way you want to be treated online too. It's the Internet golden rule!
  
  
• Let Bebo know if there is a problem. Bebo doesn't permit anything that hurts their members. Check out their terms of service and report abuses by clicking on the 'Report Abuse' link on the offenders profile. If you violate them, your hard earned and creative profile will be deleted. And arm yourself with good Internet safety information at WiredSafety.org.
  
  
• Tell a Trusted Adult and Report Cybercrime: If you are a minor (under 18 years of age), make sure that you tell your parents or another trusted adult if something goes wrong. Don't try and handle it yourself. If it involves dangerous or criminal activity, or someone you suspect is a predator or criminal, report it to your local law enforcement office. Bring them a printout, but also make sure it isn't deleted. The police need the original communication to check out the headers and other information necessary to trace the communication. If you have been sexually exploited and need some help in reporting it, visit katiesplace.org.
  
  

If you have questions or need help, visit us at WiredSafety.org and fill out one of our report forms. One of our specially trained volunteers will get right back to you. If you want to join and help us, you can drop by WiredSafety.org and fill out one of our volunteer applications. We welcome the help.

These tips were written for Bebo, and are copyrighted to me. If you want to reproduce them or use them at your site, you'll need to get my permission. To reach me, visit WiredSafety.org, Aftab.com or e-mail [email protected].

Now, go have some fun!

Note from Bebo: Additional resources can be found on BlogSafety.com, social networking for parents concerned about social networking!!!