Blog: safety, etiquette and tips for chatting

Practical guides for chatting with strangers safely, kindly, and with confidence.

• How to stay safe when chatting with strangers online

  Practical steps to protect your privacy and spot risks when you chat with strangers online, from what to share to when to leave a chat.

• Chat etiquette: how to be a good stranger

  A short guide to friendly, respectful behaviour in random text chats, with examples of openers, replies, and when to say goodbye.

• Practising English with strangers: a beginner's guide

  How to use random text chat to practise English conversation, with ideas for topics, useful phrases, and ways to ask for help with words.

• Spotting scams and fake profiles in random chat

  The warning signs of scams, bots, and fake profiles in anonymous chat, and what to do if you think someone is not who they say they are.

• How anonymous chat works, and what it means for you

  A plain-language explanation of how anonymous random chat matches people, what information is and is not stored, and how to use it responsibly.