IM and Chat Rooms

Kids like to instant message and visit chat rooms for the same reasons adults do. They can meet people with similar interests and make new friends. But chat rooms present real dangers. These have historically been a place where kids meet other kids… and adults pretending to be kids

Instant Messaging:

• Make sure your kids are not giving out personal information through IM. Check their away messages from time to time.
• Set limits on how much time your child can spend using IM and e-mail. Consider not letting your child do homework in a room with the computer on, unless she is using the computer to do homework.
• Make sure your kids block IM from strangers. Every IM service has a blocking feature. Make sure you child knows when and how to use it.

Chat Rooms:

• Make sure the chat is monitored. This means it’s supervised by an online adult who works for the website running the chat.
• Don’t let your child use his real name, IM, or e-mail as identification for the chat. Spammers grab these addresses and use them for sending mass emails.
• Be sure your child knows never to meet anyone in the “real world” who he meets in a chat room. And he should agree to tell you immediately if anyone asks for an in-person meeting.
• Your child should understand that people in a chat room might not be kids, but adults looking for sex.

Parent's Guide to Online Chatting:

Internet chatting and text messaging uses its own words and abbreviations. Treat it like a foreign language and learn what your child is saying.

Learn the Language:

2B or not 2B = To Be or Not To Be

2G2BT = To Good To Be True

411 = Info

4EAE = For Ever and Ever

4EVER = For Ever

4NR = Foreigner

A/S/L = Age, Sex, Location

AAF = As A Friend

AAK = Asleep At Keyboard

AAMOF = As A Matter Of Fact

AAR8 = At Any Rate

ABT2 = About To

ADR = Address

AKA = Also Known As

B4 = Before

B4N = Bye For Now

B4UKI = Before You Know It

BB = Be Back

B4YKI = Before You Know It

BC = Because

BFF = Best Friends Forever

BI BI = Bye Bye

BKA = Better Known As

BRB = Be Right Back

BTW = By The Way

C/S = Change of Subject

CWYL = Chat With You Later

CYA = See You

CYT or SYT = See You Tomorrow

Dys = this

FYI = For Your Information

G2G = Got To Go

H/P = Hold Please

J5M = Just 5 Minutes

HAK = Hugs and Kisses

HBU = How Bout You

J/K = Just Kidding

KEWL = Cool

KOTL = Kiss On the Lips

L8R = Later

LMIRL = Let's Meet In Real Life

LMK = Let Me Know

LOL = Laugh Out Loud

Lyk = Like

M or F = Male or Female

NALOPK = Not A Lot of People Know

N-A-Y-L = In A While

NEWAY = Anyway

NW = No Way

OMG = Oh My GOD

OTP = On the Phone

P911 = Parent Alert

PIR = Parent in Room

POS = Parent Over Shoulder

QT = Cutie

ROTF = Rolling On the Floor

RU = Are You?

RUOK = Are You Ok?

S or G = Straight or Gay

SWDYT = So What Do You Think?

TDTM = Talk Dirty To Me

THX = Thanks

TMI = Too Much Information

TOM = Tomorrow

TTYL = Talk To You Later

WT = what the

WTG = Way to Go

WYCM = Will You Call Me