In chat rooms, you can never be sure if the person you are talking to is
as they describe themselves.
We spend years as parents telling our children not to talk to strangers!
It is good practice, particularly for young people, not to give strangers
personal details which can identify where they live or go to school, or
which could identify them in any way.
It is also good practice for parents to talk to their children about where
they go on the net - stay interested even if it's all "tech talk"
to you.
The main problem with e-mail is "spamming" or
junk mail. You don't want to have to wade through loads
of irrelevant mail, so be careful who you give your
address to. Be aware that if you post to a Newsgroup,
unscrupulous companies can get your address.
Children are advised not to use full names which might
identify them when they are on line.
it is there to remind you, not to scare you. 