Ask Sam letter

Hi there,

When saying who you are online it’s usually better to not give your real name or not to give your full name. You don’t know who could be looking at what you put on the internet and so it’s important to be as anonymous as possible.

The things that are personal to you, like where you live and where you go to school, are especially important to keep private because these are details someone could use to find you in the real world. Try to think before you share the name of your school on social media or taking photos wearing your school uniform.

Sharing even just your first name can be risky because someone might be able to find out more about you with lots of little bits of information from lots of places.

Even if it’s someone you know like a friend or family member you need to be careful. You can never be sure who you’re talking to – especially in chats. Sometimes people might fake an account to look like a friend or might be a chatbot made to act like a person. It’s always best to make absolutely sure that who you’re talking with is definitely the person you think it is.

With close friends and family it’s best to set up a password or phrase that only they know the answer to, so that if someone is pretending to be them they wouldn’t know the secret word.

So I’m sorry I’m not going to share any more about myself but it’s the best way to be safe online and I want you to be safe as well.

Take care

Sam