And on the same topics! He also knows this and told me that my work should be different from his; otherwise he would share my pictures with my friends. I am very upset and afraid. What should I do?
Dear Guru,
I am a 15-year-old girl, and I have a serious problem. I met someone on Facebook about a year ago. We became good friends as he was funny and sweet. On his request I accepted his request to connect on my Instagram account, and that is when the problem started. He photo-shopped a couple of my pictures to include himself, and they were not very nice pictures! I was angry and blocked him, then he threatened me on Facebook. He said if I didn’t unblock him he would create trouble because he had the contact info of all my friends. He is blackmailing me, Guru. He makes me do his assignments, although I have my own to do in the same time frame. The quality of my work is suffering because every time I have an assignment, he has one, too. And on the same topics! He also knows this and told me that my work should be different from his; otherwise he would share my pictures with my friends. I am very upset and afraid. What should I do?
Upset School Girl
Dear Upset School Girl,
In all probability, this guy is one of your classmates. He is too lazy to do his own work, so he is making you do it. That is why the topics of your assignments is the same. My dear, tell your parents about your problem, and ask them to contact your teachers. You probably have the copies of the work you did for him, and by providing it to your teachers you can unearth your tormentor. If you haven’t retained the assignments you did for him wait till he asks you to do something for him. Your parents can give your teacher or headmistress a copy of the assignment before the submission date, and the school authorities will do all that is required.
This person, so far, has only been asking you to do his assignments but, if unchecked, his demands may become serious. He must be stopped now and your only option is to disclose your mistake to your parents. They will probably scold you, but will protect you as well. In future, don’t make friends online because there are a lot of bad people out there who can really make a lot of trouble. Also, check your privacy settings and make sure only your friends can see your social media posts. Good luck
Social media has become a part of people’s lives, and one cannot really avoid it. However, Internet safety is a very important issue, and you all must take it very
seriously. You can protect yourself to a big extent by being careful. First of all, never accept friend requests from strangers. Accept requests from people you know very well. Be careful about what you post; never send inappropriate pictures or content, and never give your address or other personal information on social media sites. Also, make your account private, so only your friends will be able to see your posts. Never share your phone number or address. Changing password frequently is also very important. In case
you are being harassed, report to website administrators. Remember, although clichéd, prevention is still better than cure.
Kindly send your problems at: us.mag@thenews.com.pk
