Fact - the only way to be totally safe is to unplug your computer from the internet

Chatting online can be a lot of fun, talking to other people all over the world where the topics of conversation are endless.

It can also be very addictive and dangerous. On this page you will find tips on how to protect yourself while chatting online.

The most important rule is DO NOT GIVE OUT ANY PERSONAL INFORMATION!

1) Never use your real name, address, phone number, or any other piece of information that relates to you EVER. Lie. Make stuff up. Use aliases and try to give out false information when asked. Why do you need to lie? Because with a birth date and a full name a person can overtake every aspect of your life. A simple birth date and first and last name can get a birth certificate, a credit report, an address, a driver's license, a credit card, and a loan. At that point, the person with this information is an exact duplicate or "clone" of you to anyone who doesn't know you. This also means don't give out information about your family or friends.

2) Never accept a file from anyone you don't know or that you haven't asked for. File transfers are common on IRC, with everything from pirate software to music to personal pictures being handed over between users on a regular basis. If someone wants to send you a file, don't accept until you know that person is sending you what they claim. The transfer of files is the easiest way of sending viruses on the internet.

3) Never accept a DCC transmission from someone you don't know. Direct Channel Connections, or private messages, are a preferred way to talk among people on IRC. Unfortunately, these same DCC connections can be used to pass corrupt files, send viruses, and "nuke" people. By acknowledging a DCC connection, you give more information about yourself to who ever is on the other side of the connection.

4) Don't trust anybody. However harsh this may seem, it is a fact on IRC. Most of the people you meet on IRC will be there for reasons you can trust, but there is a segment of the IRC population that are merely there to harm you in whatever way they can. You wouldn't trust a person you just met on the street to come into your home. On IRC, just as in real life, trust must be earned.

5) Don't let your children chat without you there. There are many places that offer safe children's chat on the web. They state that they are looking for predators, and will stop people who wish to do your children harm. So why does it still happen? Nobody can be everywhere all the time. Unfortunately, chat has a lot of every where's. So sit with your children when they chat. If you have to go away from the computer, disconnect.

Setting up mIRC

At the top of the mIRC window is a menu that says: FILE TOOLS DCC COMMANDS WINDOW HELP

Click FILE, then OPTIONS - Or just click the Options icon, second from the left.

Inside the grey box that comes up, you will see a window with a narrow white box on the left side. The grey part of the box just above the white box says: Category

In that white box is a menu with the items in a vertical row.

Connect
Options
Local Info
Identd
Firewall

The first item on the menu is Connect.
Click Connect

The information on the right hand side of the gray box changes.

There are four buttons on the right:
ADD EDIT DELETE SORT
Below that is a button that says CONNECT

Below all that, you can change your information.
Make up a fake "Full name" and a fake "email address"

It's the first part of your email address you want to change...the network fills in the last part of your email address from information it gets about your connection , so there is no point in changing that. You may choose to put something like noone@yourisp.com or whoever@yourisp.com.

You can change your nickname here too, but not while you're connected to a server. Use the command /nick to change your nickname while you're connected.

Before you try it lets change one more thing:

Over on the left where the menu has

Connect
Options
Local Info
Identd
Firewall

Click on Identd

The information in the gray part on the right changes again.
There are 3 little check boxes...make sure each has a check.
There is also a box that says User ID.

In the box next to User ID put in the first part of the fake email address you made up. If you put noone@yourisp as your email address, put noone in this box. If you don't want to use the same thing that you used for your email address, make up another fake identifier.

Click OK

Now for these changes to take effect, you will have to disconnect from the server and reconnect. If you are not changing any information, do not disconnect.

You connect & disconnect by clickiing the lightening bolt symbol in the top left hand corner of mIRC.

Now that you are connected to a network, you can check to see how your information looks to the rest of the world. Type: /whois yournick

If your nick is noone, type /whois noone and look at the info that comes up. If something isn't the way you want it, go back and change whatever you don't like.