Has it ever happened to you that you enter a chat room and you have no idea how it works? In this article I hope to help you by providing some answers to the most frequently asked questions about chatting and chat rooms.

Are chat rooms safe?

Great question. Most sites with chat rooms do their best to keep the chat rooms up to date. If the webmaster of the site keeps his software up to date then yes, it should be safe.

Can people know where you live?

No. If you do not reveal your personal information no one should know it.

What is private chat?

It is a private conversation you have with another chatter. No one but you and the other person would be able to see it unlike public chat in the lobby, everyone can see those and anyone can reply.

What to do with if someone is bothering you while you chat?

Simple, all chat room software allow a function that let's you block or ignore users from chatting with you. Once blocked attempts at communicating with you will not go through. They will not even know they are blocked.

Are they free

Another great question. Generally they are. However all chat websites are not the same. Usually you will know if they are free or not. The majority of sites will be free.

How can I find about the privacy policy and terms of service of a site?

Generally the privacy policy and terms of service will be located in the home page either in the footer or in less likely but possible cases in the header. If not, check for a site map if the site has one. Then you can look for the privacy policy and terms of service in the sitemap. Still cant find it? In that case the best thing to do is to contact the webmaster directly, send them an email and ask.

Are there rules?

Yes, most all chats have rules. Some rules include the minimum and maximum age. Guidelines as to what is allowed and what is not. Its important to read the chat rules. Because if you break any guidelines you can end up being banned from the site.

I am banned! What to do?

Bans usually are given to rule breakers. Moderating staff that monitor the chat rooms have monitor users. If they see a rule breaker they can ban that user via IP address. This will prevent that user from entering the chat again. Ban expires when the administrator or the moderator clears the list of banned IP's between a 24 hour period. If you have been banned for more than 24 hours you will need to contact the webmaster of the site and inquire as to when your ban will expire.

Hopefully I have answered some of the questions you might have about chat rooms and chatting so that next time you find yourself in a chat you will have knowledge as to the most common answers to the questions asked by people. Having this knowledge will help you know what is happening when you chat online.