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Lauren Kerensky, a Jersey Shore native, joined ADOTAS as an editorial intern for the 2006 summer. Graduating as an English/Creative Writing major from Colgate University and interning as an entertainment news writer, in addition to being an involved foodie, bring Lauren's writing topics and interests to span a wide array of genres.

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Why MySpace Security Won’t Work

Written on
Jun 23, 2006 
Author
Lauren Kerensky  |
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Why MySpace Security Won’t Work

While it is difficult to contrive a way to curb this problem, I think it is inevitable to accept that any venue that links strangers, whether it be an instant messenger or a social networking site, provides sexual predators with a means to connect to victims. Preventative information, though laughable at times, may just be the only remedy. Typically, I would say that refraining from making arrangements to meet with MySpace friends or withholding certain contact information is obvious from an early age. However, various events have shown otherwise.

Just this week, a fourteen-year-old girl who claims she was sexually assaulted by a nineteen-year-old user is suing MySpace and News Corp for $30 million, while earlier this month a sixteen-year-old convinced her parents to get her a passport which she then used to fly to the Mideast to be with a twenty-year-old man she met on the site. Past incidents include a twenty-six year old male meeting and purportedly raping a fourteen-year-old and the alleged murder of a fourteen-year-old girl from New Jersey.

The list of such situations is troublingly lengthy, but two things in particular are equally bothersome — the fact that these youngsters think that it is acceptable to meet up with strangers because they are convinced that they “know” them, and the fact that many of these kids are reaching out to the adults. For the latter circumstance, I can only say that there is an issue that exceeds the bounds of sexual exploitation on MySpace.

As an earlier ADOTAS article pointed out, many of the sexually explicit chats and groups include young members who enter at their own choosing. The website simply provides the troubled teens with a venue to act on their problem. As for the former occurrences, it seems that there has been an absence of vital street sense imparted to many of these victims. Children are usually taught early on to refrain from talking to strangers in any circumstance. Do not take candy from them, do not go anywhere with them, and if they persist, yell for help. And yet, the informal conversation of internet chat seems to throw all of that teaching by the wayside.

People feel protected by the computer screen and, because personal information is put on display via profiles, conversations can get intimate pretty quickly, causing users to feel like they have “connected” with the person. No doubt such a sensation overwhelmed the girl who fled to the Mideast to unite with a perfect stranger.

My only guess is that making it clear to young MySpace users that there is not, in fact, that large of a difference between the online world and the physical one could be the most useful preventative tool. Even teenagers, who often feel that they are old enough to know better, could probably benefit from an influx of tips, and evidently, so can parents who should be instilling this information.

MySpace’s new guidelines in the viewing of lists and profiles may be ineffective in preventing exploitation, as may their hiring of a former federal prosecutor and an online safety chief. Some old-fashioned safety tips and a general awareness of the possible dangers just might be the best solution. Either way, I am quite sure that this will not be the last we hear of the trials and tribulations of MySpace.





Reader Comments.

The Article entitled “Why MySpace Security Won’t Work” by Lauren Kerensky was enlightening and informative. I have been trying for months to explain the trials and tribulations that MySpace can cause to my niece and nephew and this is the perfect article to get my point across. I have printed this article and will back up my “preaching” with actual facts. Great job Lauren and keep up the good work!

Posted by Steven Graziano | 10:47 am on June 23, 2006.

Another way to look at this is to guess that the “incidence” rate is around (less than?) one per million users per year, and conclude that while that may not be “acceptable,” it gives one pause as to whether it is curable or preventable.

Posted by Ken Levin | 4:03 pm on June 23, 2006.

can u help me sign in please

Posted by iyani williams | 10:27 pm on March 8, 2007.

my myspace keeps going to the home page, and won’t let me check anything!

Posted by sarah | 11:01 am on August 28, 2007.

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