Online safety is really important these days as we spend more and more time using the internet. Here are some tips for keeping yourself safe when you’re online;

• Meeting online friends in real life can be really dangerous. You never really know who they are; many people lie about themselves online and sometimes they are really dangerous people.
• If you must meet someone that you know from online in real life, meet in a public place, bring a friend or family member that you trust and make sure your parents or friends know where you’re going so they can be aware that you may be in a risky situation.>/span>
• Don’t give your real /full name and NEVER give out your address, school/workplace or phone number online.
• Never give out personal information about you or your friends and family online.
• If you receive or see something that makes you uncomfortable, STOP right away and tell a parent or friend that you trust.
• NEVER give out your passwords or PIN numbers to anyone.
• Don’t open emails, files, or web pages unless you know who they are from. They could contain viruses or spyware.
• Don’t believe everything that you read or see on the internet. The freedom of information available on the net is great, but it can have its drawbacks; anyone can put any info on the net without it being true or accurate.

For more info about online safety check these out;

Tom Wood's Complete Guide to Stopping Cyber-Bullying

http://www.safekids.org/worldwide/where-we-work/australia/
http://www.wiredsafety.org/
http://www.nsteens.org/

For info /research about internet use by same sex attracted and gender diverse young people check this out;

http://www.glhv.org.au/node/222

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