Police warn youngsters about networking sites

Feb. 8: The Hyderabad police has warned youngsters against befriending strangers on the Internet, particularly on social networking sites during Valentine’s Day.“Cyber space is growing place for offenders to commit crimes,” the police said in a post on the website hyderabadpolice.gov.in.“Getting exposed to social networking sites can be as dangerous as answering the door to a stranger,” the post said.“Cyber harassment is rising fast among youngsters. False profiles are being created to harass girls without their knowledge,” said R.S. Praveen Kumar, DCP, DD, Hyderabad.The police suggested that youngsters reveal as little as possible about themselves on their profile so that they are not bothered by strangers. No one befriends a person who does not have enough contact details.Social networking sites which thrive on communication, encourage the user to provide personal information. People are guarded while revealing anything about themselves when they meet others in person. However, this caution is not exercised online as the Internet provides a false sense of security as the person remains anonymous.The website advises caution while revealing information as everyone has access to the information put up on a profile.“Even though a majority of the people are not a threat, there is always a chance that a person with a criminal mind, who wants to befriend a user accesses personal data,” Mr Praveen Kumar added.