> Shannon could hear the footsteps behind her as she walked toward home.
>> The thought of being followed made her heart beat faster."You're being
>> silly," she told herself, "no one is following you." To be safe, she
>> began to walk faster, but the footsteps kept up with her pace. She was
>> afraid to look back and she was glad she was almost home.Shannon said a
>> quick prayer,"God please get me home safe." She saw the porch light
>> burning and
>> she leaned against the door for a moment, relieved to be in the safety
>> of
>> her home. She glanced out the window to see if anyone was there. The
>> sidewalk was empty. After tossing her books on the sofa, she decided to
>> grab a snack.
>>
>> She logged on under her screen name ByAngel213. She checked her Buddy
>> List and saw GoTo123 was on. She sent him an instant message:
>>
>> ByAngel213: Hi. I'm glad you are on! I thought someone was following
>> me
>> home today. It was really weird!
>> GoTo123: LOL You watch too much TV. Why would someone be
>> following
>> you? Don't you live in a safe neighborhood?
>>
>> ByAngel213:   Of course I do. LOL I guess it was my imagination
>>   cuz' I didn't see anybody when I looked out.
>>
>> GoTo123:   Unless you gave your name out on-line. You haven't done
>> that have you?
>>
>> ByAngel213: Of course not. I'm not stupid you know.
>>
>>   GoTo123:   Did you have a softball game after school today?
>>
>>   ByAngel213: Yes and we won!!
>>
>>   GoTo123: That's great! Who did you play?
>>
>> ByAngel213:   We played the Hornets. LOL. Their uniforms are so
>> gross!
>> They look like bees. LOL
>>
>> GoTo123:    What is your team called?
>>
>>   ByAngel213:    We are the Canton Cats. We have tiger paws on our
>> uniforms. They are really cool.
>>
>> GoTo123:    Did you pitch?
>>
>> ByAngel213:   No I play second base. I got to go. My homework has to
>> be done before my parents get home. I don't want them mad at me. Bye!
>>
>>   GoTo123:    Catch you later. Bye
>>
>>   Meanwhile......GoTo123 went to the member menu and began to search
>> for
>> her profile. When it came up, he highlighted it and printed it out. He
>> took out a pen and began to write down what he knew about Angel so
>> far.Her name: Shannon Birthday: Jan. 3, 1985 Age:13
>> State where she lived: North Carolina
>> Hobbies: softball, chorus, skating and going to
>> the mall. Besides this information, he knew she lived in Canton because
>> she had just told him. He knew she stayed by herself until 6:30 p.m.
>> every afternoon until her parents came home from work. He knew she
>> played softball on Thursday afternoons on the school team, and the
>> team
>> was named the Canton Cats. Her favorite number 7 was printed on her
>> jersey. He knew she was in the seventh grade at the Canton Junior High
>> School. She had told him all this in the conversations they had
>> on-line.
>> He had enough ! information to find her now.
>>
>> Shannon didn't tell her parents about the incident on the way home
>> from the ball park that day.She didn't want them to make a scene and
>> stop her from walking home from the softball games. Parents were
>> always
>> overreacting and hers were the worst. It made her wish she was not an
>> only child. Maybe if she had brothers and sisters, her parents
>> wouldn't
>> be so overprotective. By Thursday, Shannon had forgotten about the
>> footsteps following her.
>>
>> Her game was in full swing when suddenly she felt someone staring at
>> her. It was then that the memory came back. She glanced up from her
>> second base position to see a man watching her closely. He was leaning
>> against the fence behind first base and he smed when she looked at
>> him.
>> He didn't look scary and she quickly dismissed the fear she had felt.
>> After the game, he sat on a lbleacher while she talked to the coach.
>> She
>> noticed his smile once again as she walked past him. He nodded and she
>> smiled back. He noticed her name on the back of her shirt.
>>
>> He knew he had found her.
>>
>> Quietly, he walked a safe distance behind her. It was only a few
>> blocks to Shannon's home, and once he saw where she lived he quickly
>> returned to the park to get his car. Now he had to wait. He decided to
>> get a bite to eat until the time came to go to Shannon's house. He
>> drove
>> to a fast food restaurant and sat there until time to make his move.
>> Shannon was in her room later that evening when she heard voices in
>> the
>> living room. "Shannon, come here," her father called. He sounded upset
>> and she couldn't imagine why. She went into the room to see the man
>> from
>> the ballpark sitting on the sofa. "Sit down," her father began, "this
>> man has just told us a most interesting story about you."
>>
>>   Shannon sat back. How could he tell her parents anything? She had
>> never seen him before today!
>>
>> "Do you know who I am, Shannon?" the man asked.
>>
>> "No," Shannon answered.
>>
>> "I am a police officer and your online friend, GoTo123."
>>
>>   Shannon was stunned. "That's impossible! Go To is a kid my age! He's
>> 14
>> and he lives in Michigan!"
>>   The man smiled. "I know I told you all that, but it wasn't true. You
>> see, Shannon, there are people on-line who pretend to be kids; I was
>> one
>> of them. But while others do it to find kids and hurt them, I belong
>> to
>> a group of parents who do it to protect kids from predators. I came
>> here
>> to find you to teach you how dangerous it is to give out too much
>> information to people on-line.
>>
>> You told me enough about yourself to make it easy for me to find
>> you.
>> Your name, the school you went to, the name of your ball team and the
>> position you played. The number and name on your jersey just made
>> finding you a breeze."
>>
>>   Shannon was stunned. "You mean you don't live in Michigan?"
>>
>>   He laughed. "No, I live in Raleigh. It made you feel safe to think I
>> was so far away, didn't it?"
>> She nodded.
>>   "I had a friend whose daughter was like you. Only she wasn't as
>> lucky.
>> The guy found her and murdered her while she was home alone. Kids are
>> taught not to tell anyone when they are alone, yet they do it all the
>> time on-line. The wrong people trick you into giving out information a
>> little here and there on-line. Before you know it, you have told them
>> enough for them to find you without even realizing you have done it. I
>> hope you've learned a lesson from this and won't do it again"
>>
>>   "Tell others about this so they will be safe too?"
>>
>> "It's a promise!"
>> That night Shannon and her dad and Mom all knelt down together and
>> thanked God for protecting Shannon from what could have been a tragic
>> situation.

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