Post by Traveller on Mar 25, 2006 1:04:53 GMT -5
Using a rideboard can be a lot like hitchhiking if you're not careful. As your moderator, I'd like to send the bad guys away, but I'm not much better equipped to do that than you are. I can see their IP addresses, when they post. If one of those posting does commit a crime against his companions, I'll be glad to pass the time and IP address of his post along to the authorities, and maybe with search warrant in hand, they'll be able to persuade the ISP of the offending party to cooperate in identifying him.
I hope it never comes to that, but we have to be realistic. The world can be a very dangerous place, even at what might seem to be some very innocent moments. How do you deal with that reality? By being smart, and trying to see the world through a criminal's eyes, so you don't become his next victim.
The Internet can offer a lot of anonymity, and what that promises to some of the nasties is a lack of accountability for the things they might do to you. If you want to scare those guys off, what you need to do is to leave those you do business with no doubt about the fact that if you come to harm, they can be found. Most likely, you're dealing with a nice person who would never do you harm, but a truly nice person will understand if you want to play it safe.
Never finalize your travel arrangements by e-mail. That's just asking for trouble. Insist on getting a home phone number, and call to finalize without setting a time to call, first. That part's important, because otherwise the "home phone" you end up calling might just be one of the remaining pay phones that still takes incoming calls. There are more of those around than you might think.
Having his number means that you know where he's staying and he knows that you know. That doesn't give you absolute safety, but it does give you an added margin of safety. If somebody doesn't want to give you that information or says that he feels "offended" by your lack of trust, walk away and do not resume contact, even if that person wants to make peace.
Enjoy your trip. I hope I haven't scared you off, but you have to be smart.
I hope it never comes to that, but we have to be realistic. The world can be a very dangerous place, even at what might seem to be some very innocent moments. How do you deal with that reality? By being smart, and trying to see the world through a criminal's eyes, so you don't become his next victim.
The Internet can offer a lot of anonymity, and what that promises to some of the nasties is a lack of accountability for the things they might do to you. If you want to scare those guys off, what you need to do is to leave those you do business with no doubt about the fact that if you come to harm, they can be found. Most likely, you're dealing with a nice person who would never do you harm, but a truly nice person will understand if you want to play it safe.
Never finalize your travel arrangements by e-mail. That's just asking for trouble. Insist on getting a home phone number, and call to finalize without setting a time to call, first. That part's important, because otherwise the "home phone" you end up calling might just be one of the remaining pay phones that still takes incoming calls. There are more of those around than you might think.
Having his number means that you know where he's staying and he knows that you know. That doesn't give you absolute safety, but it does give you an added margin of safety. If somebody doesn't want to give you that information or says that he feels "offended" by your lack of trust, walk away and do not resume contact, even if that person wants to make peace.
Enjoy your trip. I hope I haven't scared you off, but you have to be smart.