Post: MySpace Restricts Adult Access to Teens
MySpace Restricts Adult Access to Teens
In an effort to balance an ambushing from the press, and an increasing popularity, MySpace.com has created yet another new restricition for itself, limiting access to 14- and 15-year-old by adults, 18 and older.
Under the new model, adults can no longer request to be on a minor's friends' list unless they have thier e-mail address or first and last name.
Part of the youth's profile will still be available and searchable, but gaining access to them through IM'ing (instant messaging), according to MySpace, will be more difficult.
So how much information is in this partial profile? Hometown, age, sex, and hobbies. Additional info can be added as well.
More importantly, and most alarming, there is no standard for verifying a user is creating a truthful profile on MySpace.com. In order to get around this new standard, a user needs only to create a new profile, with a false identity.
As a parent/guardian, do you feel safer that MySpace is creating such restrictions, and making an effort to keep their growing users secure?
There are 11 replies to this post
Date: June 22, 2006
Yeah, since when do people put their real dates of birth? This change is worthless. Those who want access to teens will have no qualms about pretending to be teens themselves - in fact they probably prefer it.
Date: June 22, 2006
I don't think this is going to work. It's nice in theory, but the fact is that all it takes to track someone down is their town and some of the things they do. Anything as innocuous as a school sports team will give predators more than enough information. Honestly, I'm wondering whether to just block social networking sites outright.
Date: June 26, 2006
Just face it; the internet will never be safe. You've gotta choose: security or freedom? historically this country has chosen freedom, and I don't see what's wrong with that.
Date: June 26, 2006
This isn't going to work! Young people think they're invincible! They'll "just have fun" with older people, never realizing they're the ones being duped!
Date: June 27, 2006
Wasn't it the Attourney General who said that this was completely worthless?
Date: June 29, 2006
Instead of worrying about what Myspace does or does not offer to help protect your children. How about this.... Why don't parents take responsibility of your kids and do your damn JOB!!!! Check your childrens Myspace, e-mails, IM's... Find out who your 13 yr. old daughters are talking to. Parents these days have nothing but excuses on why there are social problems. The problem is in you. the parents!!! If the parents would spend time teaching your children what is right and what is wrong. Instead of sitting on your butts watching t.v. or whatever else it is that you do, while letting the internet and television raise your kids!!! I understand that you don't want to think that you are the reason why your kids are screw ups. But instead of blaming Myspace for your childrens problems. Why don't you blame yourselves for being bad parents!
Date: June 29, 2006
If I'm reading the new MySpace rules correctly, parents (who are over 18) may not keep tabs on the MySpace pages of their children (Who are under 18). Now they are REALLY setting themselves up for a lawsuit.
Date: June 29, 2006
a possible beneficial side effect is that it may deter kids from thinking it's cool to have their age set to something like 99 years old.
let's crack down on livejournal too, and AIM.. and any email account that let's kids sign up.
perhaps a Web Identification system should be implemented similar to Social Security, but you have to use your number to sign up to any website so it can verify that you are the age you claim to be, for fear of penalty of death.
Date: June 29, 2006
I am most in agreement with korehyun (above). If we have the relationships we should with our children, we can be much more certain of their safety and their own ability to watch out for themselves as they grow.
Date: June 30, 2006
What MySpace is saying with this new "system" is that any adult friending a minor is by default a pedophile. This is the latest, most egregious, advance of the Orwellian nanny state. That people are for a "crack down on livejournal too, and AIM.. and any email account that let's kids sign up" just makes me sick. It is sickening and saddening to live in America today.
Kevid, do you really want everyone tracked online? For fear of penalty of death?? Do you have any idea how fascistic that is? Either you're trolling the "concerned parents" here, or you are a Nazi.
Date: August 11, 2006
I wish to disagree with Anonymous-- a) I do not think I am invincible, and b)every one of my friends on that only adds friends that they know in real life from school and camp. But I also agree that restrictions such as above really do nothing to help protect people, but if someone wants protection, MySpace does offer the ability to set your profile to private, which means only people you addd as friends can look at your profile-- a handy tool.