Love lost in cyberspace

It’s like your parents always warned you.

“Don’t talk to strangers online!” they would drone on as you instant messaged your friends, checked your notifications and rolled your eyes.

But maybe you should listen to those pesky parents once and a while. They might just save you some heartache and a bruised ego.

Last week an Indianapolis man went to meet a “woman” he met through Facebook, and instead of getting some action or attention, he was robbed by two masked men with guns who proceeded to drive away in his car.

Talk about having the metaphorical rug pulled out from underneath a poor shmuck.

But let this be a cautionary tale to our spry generation of social media users using sites ranging from Tinder to Grindr and every dating site under the digital sun.

While many people use these sites to innocently seek friendships, relationships or any basic form of communication, the internet is one of the last places in the world where you can be anybody you want to be, especially someone who is nothing like yourself.

We aren’t saying everyone is a liar, but keep in mind that the ripped young man sending you sweet nothings has every potential to be an 80-year-old cemetery security guard with an overactive imagination.

In the age of stolen identities and “catfishing,” extra precautions must be taken. We don’t want to see you on MTV in the next few months crying your eyes out because your internet boyfriend or girlfriend is actually an unmonitored 10-year-old with a Wi-Fi connection.

So do your research. And don’t use the Internet as a primary means of communication. There’s no harm in meeting someone at a party or a bar and responding to their Facebook messages.

But if someone seeks you out on Facebook and they’re a complete stranger, tread lightly. Don’t let the flattering attention overcome your smarter senses.  

There’s every potential that someone you meet online could be exactly who they say they are, and we aren’t shaming you. Everyone has the right to seek relationships through whatever medium he or she sees fit.

So forgive the editorial board as we play mom and pop for a second.

Somebody reading this is most likely an adult and able to make decisions for him or herself. Just make sure they’re smart ones. And don’t do anything we wouldn’t do.

­— opinion@idsnews.com
Follow the Opinion Desk on Twitter @IDS_Opinion.