Warning to young teens: Stay out of MySpace
By Alexandra Bogdanovic
03/28/2006
Local teens aren't the only people visiting "social" Internet sites such as MySpace.com.
1st Sgt. Sal Torelli of the Fauquier County Sheriff's Office is a school resource officer assigned to both Warrenton Middle School and Auburn Middle School. At an Auburn PTO meeting last week, he explained that county police have been "operating" on MySpace.com for some time. Specifically, he said that they have assumed fictitious identities so they can monitor what is happening among users.
"Cpl. Otis Ellis (another school resource officer) brought some things on the site to our attention a couple of months ago," Torelli explained. "We started looking into it -- and I don't want to scare anyone, but I was shocked at some of the things I've seen."
Information on the MySpace.com web site indicates that users must be at least 14 years old. But it is easy to create false identities and there is no mechanism to verify someone's age, Torelli said. Consequently, many people -- including some area teens -- seem to be lying about their age in order to use the site, he added.
In some cases, Torelli said that students are posting pictures in which they have alcohol or in which they are actually consuming it. They sometimes post photographs showing themselves "dressed and posing in a provocative manner," he said.
In other cases, students post pictures of themselves posing with drugs and drug paraphernalia. On some pages, students speak openly about sex and with whom they've had sex, Torelli added.
One parent at the meeting said she discovered that both of her daughters use MySpace.com, even though they no longer have Internet access at home.
"It's embarrassing," she said. "I'm a working parent. I took the computer out of the house, but they used their friend's computer to (create accounts). I was livid when I found out what goes on (on the site). I was appalled."
Hidden dangers
Various safety tips are provided on the MySpace.com Web site. Administrators warn users not to post anything "you wouldn't want the world to know about." They also warn users that "people aren't always who they say they are," and that hateful and inappropriate speech should be reported.
Even so, students who use the site simply to chat with friends are inadvertently putting themselves at risk, according to police.
Many teens do put their personal information, including their name, address and school they attend, on the site, Torelli said. They can also list their hobbies and other seemingly innocuous information, such as their favorite sports or type of music they like.
But doing so makes them vulnerable to pedophiles who surf the Internet looking for kids, Torelli warned.
After the presentation, Torelli demonstrated how easy it is to create an account. All you need to supply is basic information and a valid e-mail address, he said.
"These pedophiles look at the things kids like in their profile, such as music, bands and other things that they list," Torelli explained. "The pedophile then cons their way into your kid's life."
During his presentation, Torelli noted that law enforcement agencies outside of the United States have already investigated "several cases" involving teens who were sexually assaulted by people they met on MySpace.com.
Two men in the United States faced federal charges that govern the Internet after they allegedly solicited to have sexual contact with girls from Connecticut, Torelli noted. The cases against them were the first two federal cases involving MySpace.com, he said.
"Sonny Szeto, a 22-year-old New Jersey man, traveled from Jersey City to Connecticut. He molested an 11-year-old girl at her home. He did this while her parents were asleep," Torelli said. "He met the girl on MySpace.com."
In another documented case, Steven Letavec, a 39-year-old man from Connecticut allegedly molested a 14-year-old girl while he was visiting in Elmira, Pa. He allegedly visited her several times.
"The girl signed on MySpace.com as an 18-year-old, but told him that she was only 14," Torelli said.
Other issues
In addition to being vulnerable to pedophiles, teens who use "social" Internet sites can be susceptible to other activities such as "cyber bullying."
Torelli said cyber-bullying occurs when a teen, preteen or child who goes online is being "tormented, threatened, harassed, humiliated or otherwise targeted" by someone else on the Internet.
"Cyber-bullying is not usually a one-time thing unless it involves a death threat or serious threat to do bodily harm," Torelli said. "Children have killed each other and committed suicide after being involved in a cyber-bullying incident."
Under the Virginia Criminal Code, it is a Class 6 felony to make any kind of written threat, including those made via the Internet. Someone convicted of a Class 6 felony faces one to five years in prison; or up to 12 months in jail and a maximum fine of $2,500, either or both.
Police cannot take any punitive action based on pictures of students posing with drugs or alcohol on a Web site, however.
What's next
Torelli and Maj. Paul Mercer of the Fauquier County Sheriff's Office said they plan to do the same presentation at other schools throughout the county. Eventually they said they may also do similar presentations for students.
Meanwhile, school officials are doing what they can to make parents aware of potential problems that could arise if their children use social Internet sites.
In a letter about MySpace.com sent to parents on March 20, Superintendent of Schools Dr. J. David Martin said that students at Fauquier County schools cannot access the site from school computers since they are blocked by a filtering system.
03/28/2006
Local teens aren't the only people visiting "social" Internet sites such as MySpace.com.
1st Sgt. Sal Torelli of the Fauquier County Sheriff's Office is a school resource officer assigned to both Warrenton Middle School and Auburn Middle School. At an Auburn PTO meeting last week, he explained that county police have been "operating" on MySpace.com for some time. Specifically, he said that they have assumed fictitious identities so they can monitor what is happening among users.
"Cpl. Otis Ellis (another school resource officer) brought some things on the site to our attention a couple of months ago," Torelli explained. "We started looking into it -- and I don't want to scare anyone, but I was shocked at some of the things I've seen."
Information on the MySpace.com web site indicates that users must be at least 14 years old. But it is easy to create false identities and there is no mechanism to verify someone's age, Torelli said. Consequently, many people -- including some area teens -- seem to be lying about their age in order to use the site, he added.
In some cases, Torelli said that students are posting pictures in which they have alcohol or in which they are actually consuming it. They sometimes post photographs showing themselves "dressed and posing in a provocative manner," he said.
In other cases, students post pictures of themselves posing with drugs and drug paraphernalia. On some pages, students speak openly about sex and with whom they've had sex, Torelli added.
One parent at the meeting said she discovered that both of her daughters use MySpace.com, even though they no longer have Internet access at home.
"It's embarrassing," she said. "I'm a working parent. I took the computer out of the house, but they used their friend's computer to (create accounts). I was livid when I found out what goes on (on the site). I was appalled."
Hidden dangers
Various safety tips are provided on the MySpace.com Web site. Administrators warn users not to post anything "you wouldn't want the world to know about." They also warn users that "people aren't always who they say they are," and that hateful and inappropriate speech should be reported.
Even so, students who use the site simply to chat with friends are inadvertently putting themselves at risk, according to police.
Many teens do put their personal information, including their name, address and school they attend, on the site, Torelli said. They can also list their hobbies and other seemingly innocuous information, such as their favorite sports or type of music they like.
But doing so makes them vulnerable to pedophiles who surf the Internet looking for kids, Torelli warned.
After the presentation, Torelli demonstrated how easy it is to create an account. All you need to supply is basic information and a valid e-mail address, he said.
"These pedophiles look at the things kids like in their profile, such as music, bands and other things that they list," Torelli explained. "The pedophile then cons their way into your kid's life."
During his presentation, Torelli noted that law enforcement agencies outside of the United States have already investigated "several cases" involving teens who were sexually assaulted by people they met on MySpace.com.
Two men in the United States faced federal charges that govern the Internet after they allegedly solicited to have sexual contact with girls from Connecticut, Torelli noted. The cases against them were the first two federal cases involving MySpace.com, he said.
"Sonny Szeto, a 22-year-old New Jersey man, traveled from Jersey City to Connecticut. He molested an 11-year-old girl at her home. He did this while her parents were asleep," Torelli said. "He met the girl on MySpace.com."
In another documented case, Steven Letavec, a 39-year-old man from Connecticut allegedly molested a 14-year-old girl while he was visiting in Elmira, Pa. He allegedly visited her several times.
"The girl signed on MySpace.com as an 18-year-old, but told him that she was only 14," Torelli said.
Other issues
In addition to being vulnerable to pedophiles, teens who use "social" Internet sites can be susceptible to other activities such as "cyber bullying."
Torelli said cyber-bullying occurs when a teen, preteen or child who goes online is being "tormented, threatened, harassed, humiliated or otherwise targeted" by someone else on the Internet.
"Cyber-bullying is not usually a one-time thing unless it involves a death threat or serious threat to do bodily harm," Torelli said. "Children have killed each other and committed suicide after being involved in a cyber-bullying incident."
Under the Virginia Criminal Code, it is a Class 6 felony to make any kind of written threat, including those made via the Internet. Someone convicted of a Class 6 felony faces one to five years in prison; or up to 12 months in jail and a maximum fine of $2,500, either or both.
Police cannot take any punitive action based on pictures of students posing with drugs or alcohol on a Web site, however.
What's next
Torelli and Maj. Paul Mercer of the Fauquier County Sheriff's Office said they plan to do the same presentation at other schools throughout the county. Eventually they said they may also do similar presentations for students.
Meanwhile, school officials are doing what they can to make parents aware of potential problems that could arise if their children use social Internet sites.
In a letter about MySpace.com sent to parents on March 20, Superintendent of Schools Dr. J. David Martin said that students at Fauquier County schools cannot access the site from school computers since they are blocked by a filtering system.
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