Years ago, when I was 16 years old, I went to this site (www.playsite.com) just to play board games, Checkers, Chess, and Tangle Word, with online friends.
I ended up meeting and chatting with (and later corresponding by IM) with a 24 year old online parasitic, lying, manipulating, fiend.
He knew just what to say and pretended to be a 16 year old (same as as I was) and "just wanted to be my friend". Use caution if you go to this site.

His name was "Thomas"- beware of him (and others like him). His ICQ numbers were back then 799541, 5189959, and 5740482.

He offered to send me a bus ticket (which I refused) to entice me to secretly leave home to meet with him (which would have been a dangerously, stupid thing to do)...
As a result of this incident my mom wisely cut off my internet privileges.

I am back online now. I am very cautious about chatting with people that aren’t family members, or friends (offline) or that I don't know in person.
I usually stick to the Christian chats and/or sites that are closely monitored, offer controlls on who can contact you.

I do not to give out any information to anyone, even if I have been chatting with them for a while, I still keep in my mind that they are strangers.
I also have not posted my pictures online anywhere for all to see. I instead send a private link to family members and friends.

Sometimes I am accused of being unfriendly, or mean, but if I tell people what happened most are understanding.

Here are some guidelines to follow when chatting online, and helpful links:

As in most real cities and some towns, people should be very cautious when entering unfamiliar places.
Please follow the rules listed below for safety on the Internet

• Check with your parents before giving out any personal information.
  Like your real name, address, school name and/or address, age, telephone number,
  over the Internet, via e-mail, on a electronic bulletinboard, or in a chat area.(I suggest not giving out any info).
• Don’t provide optional information when filling in forms.
  If I have to give info (like an address or zip)I usually give out fake info. or use a P.O.Box.
  If someone asks where I live I list the closest largest metro area, that way is lessens the chance they would track me down.
• A tip for those of you in school or sports - don't give out the name of your school, school district, or sports team's name.
  People can then track you down with just a few clicks.
Before entering online competitions, promotions or signing up for freebies check first to see what information you have to give away in return.
• If you receive mean, or unpleasant e-mail messages or are chatting with someone that makes you feel uncomfortable, tell your parents immediately.
  It is not your fault if someone makes you feel uncomfortable in this way.
  Your parents can contact the on-line service, if that is where this person has contacted you, to notify them of their behavior.
• Never agree to actually "meet" someone in person that you have met on-line without your parent's permission.
• Never send a picture or anything else on-line or by "snail mail" without first checking with your parents.
• If you use an Internet Service Provider, such as AOL, which sets up a profile containing your information,
  check your profile and remove any information you don’t want published.
  Think twice before including seemingly innocuous items such as your interests or hobbies.
• Choose online nicknames carefully.
  Even if you don’t talk in a chat room, your name is displayed onscreen and other participants can check whatever details are associated with your screen name.
• If your privacy is invaded, you are stalked or harassed online, keep a log of all relevant activity, including e-mail, chat logs, newsgroup postings.
  From the very first message, create a folder to store all logs and posts. Don’t delete anything.