Hi All,
I know that saying "the internet can be a dangerous place, please be careful" seems a little bit of a 'duh' statement but I think that sometimes we all forget that this is true. I certainly have. In the last couple of months we have had two instances of stalking behaviour from members on SF toward other members they have become infatuated with.
Both of these members were banned and both are using IP masking and other techniques to make account after account after account to continue their harassment. This harrassment includes: Death threats (to themselves, the members they are stalking, other members), begging, made up stories of dramatic life woes that only the member they are infatuated with can help with. Fake accounts from 'relatives' claiming they have died, are sick, are in a coma, are on the run from gangland loan sharks... All of these come with emotional manipulation, fear and a lot of anger.
I am aware that some members received a message from an account claiming to be one of these stalkers' father and claiming they have written to unicef and to be suing the site for constantly banning him and telling him he needs professional help rather than peer support. There was an additional flurry of messages going on from this account behind the scenes that alerted us to the account early on as another of his fake accounts. I am sorry if this message upset you, I just wanted you to know that it is entirely fictitious.
There are a great many genuinely wonderful people here. People who are real and safe and sincerely amazing. I have met over a dozen in real life and many hundreds more in my years here. There are people here I would (and have) trusted with my life. I thank all of you that make this place what it is for giving your time, energy and truth to this forum. I also urge you to be aware that not everything you read here is the truth and that strangers on the internet can be dangerous. Please keep your personal information safe until/unless you are absolutely sure that the person you are talking to is stable and safe. Please don't go off site to talk where we cannot find the problems and close them down, unless you are absolutely sure there isn't going to be an issue.
Most importantly: if you feel uncomfortable with someone, however stupid it may seem, please report it so we can check it out and make sure that this person is not a danger to our members.
Thank you, as always, for making this forum what it is.
Freya
I know that saying "the internet can be a dangerous place, please be careful" seems a little bit of a 'duh' statement but I think that sometimes we all forget that this is true. I certainly have. In the last couple of months we have had two instances of stalking behaviour from members on SF toward other members they have become infatuated with.
Both of these members were banned and both are using IP masking and other techniques to make account after account after account to continue their harassment. This harrassment includes: Death threats (to themselves, the members they are stalking, other members), begging, made up stories of dramatic life woes that only the member they are infatuated with can help with. Fake accounts from 'relatives' claiming they have died, are sick, are in a coma, are on the run from gangland loan sharks... All of these come with emotional manipulation, fear and a lot of anger.
I am aware that some members received a message from an account claiming to be one of these stalkers' father and claiming they have written to unicef and to be suing the site for constantly banning him and telling him he needs professional help rather than peer support. There was an additional flurry of messages going on from this account behind the scenes that alerted us to the account early on as another of his fake accounts. I am sorry if this message upset you, I just wanted you to know that it is entirely fictitious.
There are a great many genuinely wonderful people here. People who are real and safe and sincerely amazing. I have met over a dozen in real life and many hundreds more in my years here. There are people here I would (and have) trusted with my life. I thank all of you that make this place what it is for giving your time, energy and truth to this forum. I also urge you to be aware that not everything you read here is the truth and that strangers on the internet can be dangerous. Please keep your personal information safe until/unless you are absolutely sure that the person you are talking to is stable and safe. Please don't go off site to talk where we cannot find the problems and close them down, unless you are absolutely sure there isn't going to be an issue.
Most importantly: if you feel uncomfortable with someone, however stupid it may seem, please report it so we can check it out and make sure that this person is not a danger to our members.
Thank you, as always, for making this forum what it is.
Freya