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My first chat room in 1996 taught me to never use my real name online

I was 14, sitting at the family computer in our living room in Phoenix. I logged into a random AOL chat room about bands and typed 'Hi, I'm Linda from Arizona!' Within two minutes, a private message popped up from a stranger asking exactly which school I went to. It scared me so much I yanked the phone cord out of the modem. That single moment in 1996 made me create my first screenname, 'linda_kelly17', and I've used a handle ever since. Did anyone else have a moment like that that made you lock down your info for good?

2 comments

2 Comments

anthony8831mo ago

Yanking that phone cord out of the modem... that's such a clear memory. It really shows how real the threat felt even back then. What did your parents say when you told them why you disconnected everything?

bencampbell1mo ago

My dad just sighed and said the phone bill better not be crazy. Did your parents actually get mad about losing the dial tone, or were they more worried about the virus itself?