Blumenthal: Parents' role crucial to kids' safety online
By Martin B. Cassidy
Staff Writer
Published March 30 2006
As MySpace.com and other social networking Web sites grow, tighter technological safeguards are needed to protect children, state Attorney General Richard Blumenthal said last night at a meeting in town.
But parents must keep tabs on the increasingly computer-savvy children to make sure they are using the site in a safe manner.
"Parents are the first line of defense against Internet predators and other online dangers," Blumenthal said.
Last night Blumenthal met with residents at the Greenwich YMCA as part of a statewide tour about his effort to get the site's owners to make changes, including weeding out links to pornography and developing software for parents to keep their children off the site.
Blumenthal has also asked News Corp., the site's owner, to raise the site's minimum user age from 14 to 16 and to enforce it.
Because News Corp. bought MySpace to rake in ever larger advertising dollars on the strength of its 63-million-member user base, it has an interest in policing it as well, Blumenthal said.
"They recognize that it's in their self-interest," Blumenthal said. "I don't think MySpace wants the bad stuff on its site, and they've had some push-back from advertisers who are worried about their image."
Weston Police Officer Matthew Brodacki, who conducts computer forensics investigations, also gave a quick demonstration of how parents can access MySpace and find their kid's profiles.
Brodacki said the site's open and public nature has police on edge, pointing to federal charges against two men for sleeping with teenage girls they met on the site.
Brodacki said many adults are under the false impression that MySpace's technology blocks people from viewing the pages of children under 16 without permission.
Brodacki showed parents preselected pages belonging to teenagers on MySpace to point out that they often include pertinent information such as ZIP codes that predators can use, and that young teenagers often lie about their age to get on the site.
In Weston, police arrested an adult MySpace user who went to a teenage girl's house, where she and friends were having a slumber party.
"They think they are completely anonymous, but they are not," Brodacki said.
But Brodacki advised parents that banning the technology might be counterproductive, prompting kids to set up pages on other similar sites.
Other changes Blumenthal wants to see MySpace make:
* Develop a system that prevents anyone under the age of 18 to view adult material.
* Banish porn merchants who repeatedly post links on the site to adult material, and stop those seeking casual sex on the site from speaking with minors.
* Hire an independent watchdog to monitor inappropriate material, sexual predators, and other problems on the site.
Town resident Lynn Kelly, the parent of a 16-year-old daughter, said after the talk that for her peace of mind she will insist on seeing her daughter's profile and making any needed changes.
"Before tonight I just made strong suggestions, but now I will have to make sure it's clean," Kelly said.
Nancy Risman, also of Greenwich, who has an 11-year-old daughter, said today's children are more computer savvy, which can be daunting for a parent who wishes to keep tabs on them.
Even with safety measures in the home, children can access inappropriate material and talk to dangerous people online at coffee shops and libraries, she said.
"Not to sound too 'Star Wars,' but this universe of the Internet has grown so rapidly that no matter what restrictions you put on children, they can do it if they want," Risman said. "It's an overwhelming issue."
Copyright © 2006, Southern Connecticut Newspapers, Inc.
Staff Writer
Published March 30 2006
As MySpace.com and other social networking Web sites grow, tighter technological safeguards are needed to protect children, state Attorney General Richard Blumenthal said last night at a meeting in town.
But parents must keep tabs on the increasingly computer-savvy children to make sure they are using the site in a safe manner.
"Parents are the first line of defense against Internet predators and other online dangers," Blumenthal said.
Last night Blumenthal met with residents at the Greenwich YMCA as part of a statewide tour about his effort to get the site's owners to make changes, including weeding out links to pornography and developing software for parents to keep their children off the site.
Blumenthal has also asked News Corp., the site's owner, to raise the site's minimum user age from 14 to 16 and to enforce it.
Because News Corp. bought MySpace to rake in ever larger advertising dollars on the strength of its 63-million-member user base, it has an interest in policing it as well, Blumenthal said.
"They recognize that it's in their self-interest," Blumenthal said. "I don't think MySpace wants the bad stuff on its site, and they've had some push-back from advertisers who are worried about their image."
Weston Police Officer Matthew Brodacki, who conducts computer forensics investigations, also gave a quick demonstration of how parents can access MySpace and find their kid's profiles.
Brodacki said the site's open and public nature has police on edge, pointing to federal charges against two men for sleeping with teenage girls they met on the site.
Brodacki said many adults are under the false impression that MySpace's technology blocks people from viewing the pages of children under 16 without permission.
Brodacki showed parents preselected pages belonging to teenagers on MySpace to point out that they often include pertinent information such as ZIP codes that predators can use, and that young teenagers often lie about their age to get on the site.
In Weston, police arrested an adult MySpace user who went to a teenage girl's house, where she and friends were having a slumber party.
"They think they are completely anonymous, but they are not," Brodacki said.
But Brodacki advised parents that banning the technology might be counterproductive, prompting kids to set up pages on other similar sites.
Other changes Blumenthal wants to see MySpace make:
* Develop a system that prevents anyone under the age of 18 to view adult material.
* Banish porn merchants who repeatedly post links on the site to adult material, and stop those seeking casual sex on the site from speaking with minors.
* Hire an independent watchdog to monitor inappropriate material, sexual predators, and other problems on the site.
Town resident Lynn Kelly, the parent of a 16-year-old daughter, said after the talk that for her peace of mind she will insist on seeing her daughter's profile and making any needed changes.
"Before tonight I just made strong suggestions, but now I will have to make sure it's clean," Kelly said.
Nancy Risman, also of Greenwich, who has an 11-year-old daughter, said today's children are more computer savvy, which can be daunting for a parent who wishes to keep tabs on them.
Even with safety measures in the home, children can access inappropriate material and talk to dangerous people online at coffee shops and libraries, she said.
"Not to sound too 'Star Wars,' but this universe of the Internet has grown so rapidly that no matter what restrictions you put on children, they can do it if they want," Risman said. "It's an overwhelming issue."
Copyright © 2006, Southern Connecticut Newspapers, Inc.
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