MySpace, Safe Haven for Sex Offenders?

During an internal investigation it was determined that thousands of sex offenders have profiles on MySpace and now 8 attorneys general have requested the profiles of the sex offenders present in their state. It does appear that MySpace is taking the right steps in ensuring the security of its’ users by cross referencing their database with that of a sexual predator database and deleting profiles that match up. What, if any, ramifications will this have on the perception and on going acceptance by the mass market of social networking sites. On the one hand I think that it could be detrimental because MySpace is the largest, most talked about, social networking site out there and the one that many others are judged against especially by individuals who do not actively participate in social networking. On the other hand I think that many individuals (users and non-users) have at times had the perception that MySpace was or is unsafe and that this perception does not carry over to other social networking sites that they may be a part of. For example of I know several Facebook users who think that MySpace is corrupt and dangerous and therefore have refused to join.

Then there is the part of me that thinks that parents should be more actively involved in what there children are doing on or off line. I have ran across some extremely provocative pictures of what I consider children (13-16 yrs old) on MySpace and often said to myself “why in the world would their parents let them put these kinds of images up?”

Either way I think that there will always be bad people out there that want to harm others. These people exist in the online/virtual worlds as well as the real world. It is up to each individual person to stay aware of their surroundings and take responsibility for their own safety. Think things through and try to always make smart decisions. I am going to use my better judgment and not walk down any dark alleys late at night by myself, and I will always try to translate that same cautiousness into all of my online interaction.