Online date horror

POLOKWANE – A 17-year-old resident shared the story of how she was misled by an internet stalker who lied to her about nearly everything they spoke about on a social network.

Natasha Neethling, who spoke to Review with her mother’s permission, said she first became aware of a man who called himself Jamie Owen after he commented on her pictures and posts on Facebook.

She said they communicated with each other on Facebook and the man said he was 19 years old.

“It seemed like he was the man I had waited for as we had so much in common. I never thought I would meet someone online, but he gave me hope.”

It was only when they decided to meet at a shopping centre in the city, that she realised she had been taken for a ride. The man who met her was in his 40’s.

“The man said he used different aliases and lied about his age as he did not want to scare the girls off before they got to know him.

“He said he was looking for a younger woman whom he could treat and take care of. He also said he had a lot of money and wanted to share his wealth,” Natasha said.

“I immediately swore at him and walked away. I went home and told my parents what had happened. My mother said we should contact Review to warn other young people.

“I feel violated and betrayed. There is no way I will trust a person online again. I had to change my profile and page on Facebook.”

Natasha said it was only later that she realised she was lucky to walk away unscathed.

“Anything could have happened like abduction, rape or murder, and I want to warn other young girls. This is a real-ity,” she warned.

She said the man in question deleted the fake Facebook page through which he contacted her and seemed to have disappeared from the city. She did not go to the police to report the incident because she felt too embarrassed.

Polokwane police spokesperson WO Lesiba Ramoshaba said the police warn people that predators were window-shopping the internet for photographs of children that contained geographical tagging (geotagging) information.

According to Wikipedia, geotagging is the process of adding geographical identification data to media such as photographs or videos, websites or SMSes.

“This information is used to gain access to children. The unsuspecting parents and children who add such information to photographs enable the predators. Any form of online bullying and stalking should be reported to the nearest police station; there are specialised officers in the police service who deal with these crimes.”

Local information technology (IT) specialist, Jaco Viviers, said geotagging provided the exact location at which photographs were taken and, combined with other personal information, could be used to gather information on a person.

Provincial police spokesperson, Col Ronél Otto, said stranger danger had been completely redefined by the internet.

“The door is open for paedophiles to gather information and befriend children even before meeting them in person. The problem is that many of these cases do not get reported unless someone was kidnapped or raped, as people feel embarrassed that they were taken for a ride. When you use social networks, make sure that you only include people who you know. Should you decide to meet someone you don’t know, make sure you do not go alone and that the meeting takes place at a public place,” she said.

Viviers said the following could be done to protect their children:

• Make sure children’s social network accounts are set to private to ensure that no pictures can be copied or shared inappropriately.

• Make sure that all your children’s friends both online and in person, are well known and trusted.

• Teach your children what is appropriate to share online, and what is not.

• Have open discussions about why rules are helpful, as well as the online dangers that exist.

• Monitor your children and their interaction on social media.