Rebecca Lipcsei was an ordinary 11-year-old playing in a park with a friend when she encountered a stark-naked flasher.

Rebecca, now 27, who was living in Canada at the time, got the shock of her life.

She said: "There were some new apartments that had just been built near the park and they were still empty. One day, when I was playing on the swings in the park with a friend, I saw a man standing totally naked in one of the apartments looking out of some patio doors.

"He was laughing when he realised we had seen him and although I didn't know what he was doing at the time, I realise now that he had been playing with himself. We were both scared and ran home," added Rebecca, who now lives with her boyfriend Mark Skinner in Islip.

"Looking back, I know he was a pervert and it could have been a dangerous situation."

But that wasn't Rebecca's last encounter with indecent exposure. Two years later she was the victim of an incident that will stay with her for ever.

"I was about 13 and was walking past a multi-storey car park with a friend and there was a man in there who was leaning over the railings. He asked me if I had the time.

"I looked down at my watch and as I looked back up, something didn't seem right. He was a stereotypical flasher and as I looked back up in what seemed, at the time, to be slow motion, he opened the coat he was wearing. He had nothing on underneath." With no-one else around, both girls were terrified.

"He didn't say anything and we just ran. I was really frightened because I didn't know what he was going to do. I was quite innocent and naive at the time."

She reported the incident at a nearby department store, where security guards were alerted. The store lined up four or five men and asked her to see if any of them was the flasher. She was too scared.

"I refused to walk past the men and I don't know if the flasher was ever caught.

"I don't know how I would react if I saw one now. I think I would probably say something witty, but it is different when you are younger or on your own." According to a national opinion poll this week, one in four women encounters a flasher at least once in their lives and women are calling for cases to be taken more seriously. Despite frequent incidents, only 729 men in Britain were arrested for indecent exposure in 1996, with just 495 convictions.

The survey of 650 women found a massive 86 per cent supported tougher measures. The current maximum penalty is three months' imprisonment or a £1,000 fine.

Of the one in four women who have been victims of flashers, only 11 per cent reported it to the police. The commonest reaction of others was to laugh.

Psychotherapist Phillip Hodson said: "The issue is underplayed because many people don't understand it."

He said that while most flashers are not psychopaths, for every 99 per cent that are harmless, one could be dangerous.

It's safer not to take chances. Sergeant Bob Kirby is the crime reduction officer for Oxford police and he gives women the following advises on dealing with flashers, or situations where you might become the victim of a flasher:

Minimise the risk of it happening to you: If you know where you are going, plan a route which is well-lit and well-populated. Don't take short-cuts through hidden paths in parks or places where flashers may be hidden

Carry a personal alarm or whistle. Both can startle the flasher and give you thinking time to plan your escape

If you have a mobile phone, be ready to use it at any time during your journey

If you suspect you are being followed by someone who could be a potential attacker or flasher, cross the road but, before you do so, turn around and look at him. It lets him know that you know he's there

Think through the potential situation and your response. Don't stand and confront the flasher. The best thing for you to do is to get away from the situation as quickly as you can.

"Oxford has its fair share of flashers, although I wouldn't say it's any more common than anywhere else," said Sgt Kirby.

"But there is a large population of young, female students in Oxford and this is the most vulnerable group. Taking measures to protect yourself from potentially dangerous situations is always a good idea.

"Being prepared is essential," he added.

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.