There are a lot of people on the Net who are out there to get your passwords, credit card numbers and anything else they can get. Identities are stolen online, it's a fact. You need to be careful and the best way to do that is to be prepared and be proactive. When you create a profile on a site like MySpace there are some things you need to be aware of.

Spam - You have an inbox on most social networking sites so you will get spam. Delete it right away, don't even open it if you can help it. Spam and the sites they are associated with have been known to carry virus'. Plus it's just a plain waste of your time.

Don't get personal - If you are getting to know someone online don't tell them where you live, unless you already know them in person and know they are safe. Also, don't give them your phone number, phone numbers can be easily traced these days.

The thing about the Net is anyone can be anyone. What I mean is you could be talking to a man when you think you are talking to a woman and you would never know. You could be talking to a killer when you think you're talking to a loving person.

Meetings - If you do decide to meet someone in person do it in public and take some friends. You never know who you're going to meet.

Consider Private - Lots of social networking sites let you set your profile to private. If you don't want the whole world gawking at you use the privacy feature.

Virus' - Make sure you use updated anti-virus, firewall and anti-spyware software and keep your operating system updated. Sometimes ads and other things on these sites can contain code you don't want on your computer.

Fake Name - Consider using a fake name.

Phishing - If you get an email that looks like it's from MySpace but it's not one of their regular emails, don't click on it, especially if they are asking you to log in or check your account information. It could be a scam to get your personal information and you could end up losing your identity.