BEWARE:Predators

        Numerous stories haunt the news about predators on social networking sites. Though they are prevalent on every website, thousands of "predator incidents" have occurred on the social networking site MySpace. Though MySpace requires it's users to be at least 14 years old, many younger children are finding their way onto the site as well. I read a 2006 CBS news article about the website and it discussed the numerous predators that have been arrested due to their harassment to young children on MySpace. Not to stereotype, but many of these stories involve middle-aged men who harass young girls. In 2005 alone, The Center for Missing and Exploited Children reported 2, 600 incidents of adults enticing children via the Internet. This statistic simply occurred in 2005, I can only imagine the number that 2007 reported with the rising popularity  in other social networking websites such as Facebook. 

       Though MySpace warns their users not to post any identifiable information or explicit pictures, not all users comply. Many teenagers post their phone numbers, AOL screen names, and other personal information. As the CBS news report agrees, many users post this information assuming only their friends will use it without thinking about the forty-some year old men who often stalk young girls pages just hoping to find this kind of personal information. One story talked about in the news report discusses a young girl who was active on MySpace until the day of her disappearance. Her parents blame the social networking site. Another story is that of a fourteen-year-old New Jersey girl who was found dead. Before her death she had told her friends she met a man on MySpace in his twenties. Lastly, a story in Texas about a 38 year old man talking to a 14 year old girl and asking her to meet up for sex. Police took over the fourteen year old's identity and eventually took the man into custody.

       These are just a few of the thousands of police stories linked to social networking sites such as MySpace. Though parents may be protective over their children, it can still happen to anyone. It is important to either ban or at least monitor all children's usage of social networking sites, and the Internet alone. Also, most of the social networking sites have privacy settings for a reason, people, children in particular, need to learn to use them.