With reports of terrorist threats coming out almost every day, and even Vice President Dick Cheney admitting that future attacks are "almost a certainty," many Americans may be feeling the need to have a chat with the FBI. Well, they can.

The bureau has weekly online chats with the public about everything from terrorism to security precautions at the Olympics.

"It's a way to reach out to the public and let them know what we do," said Maureen Schutz, public affairs specialist for the FBI.

Recent chats have ranged from a discussion about the Terror Warning System to a conversation with an encryption specialist.

"Most of the agents and support staff that participate are in the field or at the office all day so they seem to genuinely enjoy getting to talk to people one-on-one about what they do," Schutz said.

The chatters also seem to enjoy themselves. Their questions range from serious — in a chat with an agent involved in the anthrax investigation, Van A. Harp, many wanted to know the motivation behind the perpetrators — to lighthearted.

"Jpe zivj jsd yjod nrrm idrf om yjr est pm yrttptodz?" one user asked encryption specialist Daniel Olson.

"How much has this been used on the war on terrorism you ask? I don't really know," Olson responded.

The chats began in August 2000, when the Washington Post approached Schutz, asking if agents would be willing to do chats about issues in the news. Schutz jumped at the idea and the program became so successful that chats now take place every Thursday from 1 to 2 p.m. ET.

An added bonus, according to Schutz, is that the chats cost the FBI nothing because either USA Today or the Washington Post hosts them.

There are currently no statistics available to determine how many users log on to each chat.

Schutz, who chooses chat topics and guests, tries to select agents or support staff involved in issues that are timely or important to the average user.

In March, for example, Michael Heimbach, chief of the FBI's Crimes Against Children Unit, chatted with users about Operation Candyman, an FBI investigation into Internet child porn which was getting headlines for dismantling three Yahoo e-groups dedicated to posting pictures of children in sexual situations.

Many users wanted to know how they could help.

"As a husband and father of 3 children I will do anything to help defend against these predators. What can the average guy do to help?" a user from Minneapolis, Minn., posted.

Heimbach gave him the number of the FBI's child exploitation line and encouraged more people to get involved in preventing crimes against children.

Not all chatters want to pitch in, however. Some are angry with the way the FBI has handled certain issues, and they want to speak their mind.

In one recent discussion, domestic terrorism section chief James Jarboe chatted about eco-terrorists, groups like Animal Liberation Front and Earth Liberation Front which the bureau claims have committed more than 600 criminal acts in the United States since 1996, resulting in damages exceeding $43 million. But the discussion soon became heated.

One user wrote, "While you're prioritizing the pursuit of folks that harm only property, murderers and religious terrorists are freely planning their next actions. Stop protecting wealthy campaign contributors and start saving lives, please."

Jarboe responded, "I would think that the firefighters who have to go into blazing buildings that were set on fire by arsonists may take exception to the tone of your message that the eco-terrorists are not worthy of our interest."

The chats, of course, are well monitored by FBI public relations to make sure no secrets get out. A public relations person always sits in to make sure the agent doesn't inadvertently divulge details not supposed to be divulged. Chats also can be cancelled if agents are busy with other duties. They were called off altogether for three months after the Sept. 11 attacks.

In the future, Schutz said, she would like to see the program grow with chats more than once a week.

"I'm really proud of what it's done for the FBI," Schutz said. "It's a really good forum to let the public have a personal knowledge of the agents and what they do."

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