This is our unfortionate experience.
I take full responsibility for this, as I should have been more cautious.
I have an 11 year old daughter. We allowed her to visit "childrens" chat/game sites.
Soon she began looking over her shoulder when I entered the room.
She began feeling sick more often. We found out it was to stay home from school and chat with a certain someone.
She had given out her personal email, her name and sent photos to someone she met in a chatroom. He said he was only 12 but he had written that he loved her, asked her constantly for more pictures, asked her about her "home life" and said "he was planning on comming to visit her".
Fortionatly we caught this before she gave out our address and our last name. It was a learning experience for all of us and we are lucky noone was hurt.
She now only uses yahoo and MSN to chat with her friends from school and understands why.
Im sure most here would adjust their discussion if neccessary, if they knew there was a child present. Most of us here would want them to be comfortable and safe. But, would doing this give that child an unrealistic or false sense of security and trust when entering other chat rooms online?
I personally dont believe our children should be so exposed to strangers, its just too dangerous. Although I have met, trust and like the majority of posters here, lurkers always exist and not everyone has good intentions.
If my children were ever posting on this, or any public board, I would be very thankful if you would ask them to leave.
I would rather see my childs feelings hurt, than see them lying in their coffin.
It only takes a split second for a child to become a victim online.