MySpace Adds Anti-Predator Measures

Networking site reaches agreement with states to protect teens

By Laila Weir, Newser User

Posted Jan 14, 2008 7:18 PM CST

(Newser) – MySpace will add protections to prevent abuse by sexual predators, officials of several states said today. The social networking company reached an agreement with 49 states over concerns about predators contacting children through its popular site. MySpace will also join a working group aimed at developing new technologies, such as age verification, and that other sites will be invited as well, the AP reports.

Changes include making teen users’ default setting “private,” responding within 72 hours to content complaints, and creating a high school section for minors. The agreement comes after a multi-state investigation of MySpace, Facebook, and other social networking sites. "This is an industry-wide challenge, and we must all work together to create a safer Internet," said a MySpace rep.

[Images (3)]

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Hemanshu Nigam, left, Chief Security Officer for MySpace, and North Carolina Attorney General Roy Cooper, participate in a news conference in New York on Monday, Jan. 14, 2008. MySpace, the huge online... (Associated Press)

Hemanshu Nigam, Chief Security Officer for MySpace, speaks at a news conference in New York on Monday, Jan. 14, 2008. MySpace, the huge online social networking Web site, has agreed with more than 45... (Associated Press)

An image advertising MySpace.com is seen projected on a screen during NewsCorp's Global Energy Initiative in New York in this May 9, 2007 file photo. MySpace has reached an agreement with more than 45... (Associated Press)

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MySpace Adds Anti-Predator Measures