Social networking sites are about as safe as local schools, workplaces, streets, shops, etc. You can talk to whoever you want to, but you don’t have to. What happened to Megan on MySpace, could have happened to her in her school. The only difference would be having a live person pretending to be this “Josh” instead of having a fake profile on the net.

Even if we assume that there was a real boy pretending to be Josh and telling Megan how much he loves her only to tell her later that the world would be a better place without her, he is still not responsible for her suicide in my opinion. In a more supportive environment, Megan would have someone to talk to about her emotional problems, and would realize that being dumped by a real or fake boyfriend is no reason for taking her own life.

I have been in a similar situation where I got bullied and emotionally hurt over the internet, but all it takes to stop people from hurting you on the net is turn off the computer, or click on the “Block” button.

People can lower their chances of being abused, although since the choice to abuse is the abuser’s, the only way to completely eliminate the chance of being abused is to interact with no one, which is not a financial or desirable option for most people. It’s both fortunate and unfortunate that it is difficult to develop close relationships without revealing emotional vulnerabilities.

I’ve personally found it valuable to use an anonymous support site as an adjunct to real-life friendships, although trolls being trolls, there’s always risk of being flamed or harassed.