Richard Blumenthal, the State Attorney General of Connecticut, has proposed a bill that will require strict age verification for Myspace and other social-networking sites before users can begin using their accounts. This is being submitted in response to the recent arrest of a 23-year-old man who used Myspace to arrange a sexual encounter with an 11-year-old girl.

That was not the only incident, however. There have been other incidents involving sexual assault charges stemming from Myspace mishaps. Blumenthal’s proposal would at least add a stalwart layer of defense from such sexual predators.Included in the proposal is both a call for the implementation of strong age-verification software, as well as parental approval for minors, for young users to register. “Failing to verify ages means that children are exposed to sexual predators who may be older men lying to seem younger,” said Blumenthal regarding the proposal.

Blumenthal continued, “There is no excuse in technology or cost of refusing age verification. If we can put a man on the moon — or invent the internet — we can reliably check ages.” Hopefully that is the case, but let’s not forget a little incident that had the whole world in a tizzy called Y2K…and that was after men walked the moon.

The penalty for failing to correctly verify ages or gain parental approval would be a maximum civil penalty of $5,000. Also, the sites would be directly responsible for failing to verify ages, and the sites could be held directly liable for any incidents that occurred as a result of following the legislation.

$5,000 seems like a slap on the wrist, in comparison with the the effects sexual assault would undoubtedly have on an a child.

Taking matters a bit further, parents would be given a significantly larger locus of control over their child’s account activities; the bill would have parents be contacted when needed regarding the profiles or activities of their child.

Not surprisingly, Myspace is not thrilled with the proposal. Their chief of security, Hemanshu Nigam, responded, We have and will continue to focus considerable resources on developing effective ways to make our site safer.”

Tell that to the individuals who were sexually assualted, and see whether they feel you’re investing the resources necessary to keep them safe. Tell their parents; see what they say.

1 in 7 kids are solicited for sex online, reports the U.S. Department of Justice. This bill could change the nature of social-networking sites for the better, and force them to take the actions they have failed to thus far to ensure the security of children everywhere.

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Entry was posted on Thursday, March 8th, 2007 at 3:07 pm under Legal.

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