 "Photo: Crystal Snyder")
Throughout the last several months, the Craigslist Killer has dominated the news and made many unsure about the safety of the site.
According to MSNBC the Craigslist Killer used erotic ads to select and meet women who are then robbed and often killed.
With over 50 million users each month, Craigslist is a popular online service that features classifieds and community oriented forums.
Created in 1995 by Craig Newmark, Craigslist began as a list of community events shared through email and has since expanded to a website that shares messages of goods, services, housings, jobs, community events, personal ads and forums for advice.
Despite being a for-profit organization, Craigslist is run for and by its users, which limits the control and supervision that it had over postings and interaction facilitated through Craigslist. This can lead to scams and possibly dangerous situations.
Craigslist is often popular with college students to swap, buy and sell items. Thomas
Pearson, senior, considered purchasing a car off of Craigslist earlier this year but decided against it.
“I just didn’t trust it,” he said after hearing stories that left him wary of dealing with people on Craigslist.
Pearson’s brother, Michael Terrence Pearson, came close to becoming a scam victim.
While searching for a used car on Craigslist, Michael Pearson located a car that he was interested in buying through a post on Craigslist. Luckily, Pearson discovered the individuals who posted the ad were the creators of a fake car company and avoided the scam artists by thoroughly researching both the car and the company.
Craigslist advises that the best way in which to avoid scams or dangerous situations is to use common sense. By dealing locally and in person and never giving out personal or financial information, Craigslist can be a useful facilitative organization for all involved.
When meeting with other users Craigslist also advises meeting in public places and letting friends or family know when and where the meeting will take place. If possible, have a cell phone available or have a friend come along to the meeting, and always trust your instincts.
“I think it’s okay to use it but I think that this is yet another example how our laws have go to catch up with technology,” Toni Reynolds, senior, said.
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