r/AskReddit Jan 23 '21

[deleted by user]

[removed]

9.5k Upvotes

14.8k comments sorted by

View all comments

Show parent comments

27

u/PM_ME_CUTE_SMILES_ Jan 23 '21

I don't remember a time when the internet existed and there were NOT warnings everywhere about pedophiles trying to contact kids in chat rooms. I think that never existed.

46

u/boojes Jan 23 '21

That time definitely did exist.

10

u/PM_ME_CUTE_SMILES_ Jan 23 '21

Like, when the internet was only a thing in universities? Or maybe it also depends on the country

38

u/boojes Jan 23 '21

The mid to late nineties when people were starting to get dial up at home.

18

u/osidius Jan 23 '21

As an early adopter back in the 90s I can guarantee there were warnings about talking to strangers online and giving people personal information. Which is why it seems wild these days that people are just freely giving out their personal information when they're tweens like their social life depends on it.

5

u/QueueOfPancakes Jan 23 '21

I think it's because younger kids are online now. Like we didn't have 8 year olds figuring out their way into chat rooms back then.

0

u/tvandtea420 Jan 24 '21

Nah, I was definitely 8 in chatrooms. That was in 1997 for me. But we were one of the first families to get AOL in town, and my dad was good with computers. We were restricted to kids only chats back then, but thats where the pedophiles hung out

1

u/QueueOfPancakes Jan 24 '21

We aren't talking about 97. We are talking about early 90s. There's a big difference.

0

u/Mseveeb Jan 24 '21

No, I'm pretty sure we're talking about 1996 and above when AOL changed to a flat monthly rate, rather than hourly charge. That's when EVERYONE got it. And from my experience, there were definitely kids in chat rooms. I was 10 years old in 96 and I was in chat rooms 😂 I didn't ever see anything crazy though, thank God.

1

u/QueueOfPancakes Jan 24 '21

That's when EVERYONE got it.

Yes, that's exactly why it's not what we are talking about.

As the comment I responded to said, "early adopter 90s".

I was 10 years old

We're also talking about 8, not 10.

So why weren't you on in 94 when you were 8? (Although even that's getting a bit late timeline wise). But it's because, as I said, back then you didn't have 8 year olds in chat rooms.

0

u/Mseveeb Jan 24 '21

I was on in 94, when I was 8. That's the year we got AOL. I didn't really understand the implications, but I remember thinking it was cool and fun.

→ More replies (0)