Do you believe that MySpace.com is a threat to minors? Why or Why not?

its not a threat to minors, its a threat to stupid people who actually neglect to take precuations before meeting people in real life that they met over the internet.

I agree.

I actually have one, so I wouldn't think so. I don't think you should just randomly add people unless you know them or people who know you know them and they can be trusted. I don't add anyone who I don't know or who no one else knows, so everyone on mine I know.

It's only a threat if you're being ignorant.

I have one as well.. there are 3 people from hc on it, the rest are friends and family..

I have one, but I only talk to people I know. If I didnt know any one on there then there's no point of making one AT ALL. I don't want to risk meeting new people who could be potential threats to my life. People should stop blaming Myspace for the reason they're kids are being raped and kidnapped. It's THEIR fault for being stupid enough to talk to some random person with out even getting background information. if your kid's not responsible enough to protect themself, or You can't warn your child, then don't make one at all. It'll save you alot of face instead of complaining to Tom (who doesnt even OWN myspace anymore) about your own careless ness.

Whenever you hear about a kid that was raped, kidnapped, or killed after meeting someone on myspace, the very first thing the parent's say, is how they didn't know.. you never hear them say how hard they tried, and how they did everything they could to watch them.. but it still failed.

I think the parent's as well as the predators should be held accountable, as they are the ones who failed at keeping up with today's technology, and keeping a close eye on their kids online and staying 2 steps ahead of them or let their kids do whatever the hell they wanted online.

But there is a risk anywhere.. whether it is myspace, yahoo groups, craigslist or whatever..

I have a myspace account because members of my family are on there, as well as my uncles for the family business.. I can keep them up-to-date about changes I made to the website and forum, and they can keep their customers up-to-date on upcoming events.

I hate myspace, but I have an account for those reasons alone.. I use blogger for my blog anyway.

I am aware that kids today will find a way around anything.. however my comment is directed to those who make no real effort in securing their computer, supervising their kid, or use their ignorance as an excuse for not trying.. those who have the time to learn about technology, and keeping their kids safe online.. those who aren't working, and at home all of the time, and actually have the time to learn something. I know that time is an issue, but what about those who have the time, that a lot of parent's don't?

My point was that while it is easy to place the blame on the owners of the sites these kids visit, they are in a sense handicapped as well. they have no way of verifying whether or not the users are predators, or that the kids are of legal age to be on there, because well, kids can and have lie(d) their age..

It isn't fair to place judgement and accountability on the webmaster, when they [the parent's] have no idea how hard it is to maintain a website of that size, and the webmaster had security features in place, but the child decided to lie their age, or bypass the security on the computer and site.. and/or the parent's didn't do enough to supervise their kid online, or they underestimated them..

I mean if the kid is smart enough to circumvent any restrictive measures that the parent has in place on the computer, then don't you think that they'd be smart enough to know why they shouldn't be doing what they are doing online?

Kids today aren't stupid, and so, if they are smart enough to bypass the [pc and site's]security, then they are smart enough to know the reason why they should not be on there in first place, but instead chose to do the wrong thing and go to the site anyway. When a child is solicited online, as unfortunate as it is when it happens, all parties involved share the blame.. the webmaster just happens to have the least of it.

Its only a threat if your not smart about what you are doing.

I have one and i'm fine ;D

i with BlackRyuX i thing the same thing

and my mom is 2 step ahead of me so i cant do anything without here knowing

I also agree with Ryu.

Is it just me or did hotmail recently "upgrade" and include myspace as a part of it? so that now every hotmail user has a myspace account?

(The reason I ask this is because I was looking in my hotmail account and I saw a button marked myspace... my immediate thought was along the lines of "what the?" So I clicked it, immediately I was sent an email saying "here is your myspace account, start setting it up now." I knew myspace and hotmail were linked before but I knew then you had to signup to myspace and then it got linked with your hotmaill account, but now it's rediculous, I have a myspace account that I never wanted. There was a reason I never signed up for myspace, yet I end up with one anyway... )

Yeah, I believe it is because MS bought Myspace.. or at least that is what I heard..

Hotmail? I've got a hotmail account...But I had a myspace before that. I only have family members on my page, plus one dude who lives in italy, he cool. :B): But other then that, I think the same way as you guys, no use making a re-cap of it all. :)

I think that parents blame myspace for these sort of things like they blame anime and games for corruption of religion in their kids. Its just so... yea... >_>
Just looking at the parent shows me so much of why the kid got in the predicament in the first place. My parents are the same way, so I'm glad I never learned my "life's lessons" from them. I'm more of a self learner anyways. 10% of my friends on myspace are people I actually know in real life (4 family members and 5 friends). I've had the account for at least 4-5 years now and (shock horror surprise) nothing has happened to me.

Not to mention I have 5 e-mail accounts that are linked up to at least 90+ accounts and I've never had any problems with these things on my other accounts either. Plus my mother has no say on what I can do or not on my laptop. She honestly doesn't care seeing as she never checks on it and allows me to keep a password over it that only me and my GF know. Though I can't say she's wrong for not trusting me either, I'm the most computer literate in my home. When they've got a virus on the desktop PC for some unknown reason who do they ask to help? =/

K. I'm ranting. Gomennasai. -_-

Anyways, my point is. Anyone can be a victim on any site. But also, anyone can defend themselves against these things if they just take the time to think and use a bit of that mushy thing in their head.

Religion has corrupted people in more ways, in worse ways and for a lot longer then anything else parents fear ever could.. but that's just me.

and I agree with you, but unfortunately, fear, ignorance, and paranoia will continue to rule over the masses, and it is exactly why things are the way they are now. The only way things will get any better is with an education, and the use of common sense.

Nope, I don't have a Myspace or even want one, and I didn't get sent a email saying I had one, it'll be hard to convince me to get one.

I don't think it's that great myself, it's just the main way I communicate with my family members...and we don't have much to say most of the time...other then that, me and my freinds chat using either IM, or e-mail...but the blogs not too bad...I guess, I'm not 100% sure of what the term 'blog' really means, but I use it anyway...and my parents...they check on my computer every now and then and pretend like their doing nothing...they check my e-mail, and look at my history...(I delete my cookies/history often for hard-drive space reasons)it annoys me to heck. I never thought of setting a computer password though...naw, they would ask me what it is and punish me if I didn't, defeating the purpose of the password...my parents just don't trust me... :-_-:

Heh, it was the same way for me when I had to share the main computer of my home...
I wanted a password because I was the only System Administrator (I had set the rest of my family to limited users because both my parents are... shall I say computer illiterate? and thus would end up doing more harm than good with system admin power. And my 2 brothers... well one of them was younger at the time and notorious for doing things he was told not to. So no sys admin power for him, it'd go to his head anyway. But the middle brother wasn't so bad, but still he also had very little computer skill.) So I did end up passwording my system admin account... ( I told them why... which I've already said, it's to prevent changes made by people who didn't know what they were doing. ) But they refused to listen so they used the trick...
"If you don't have anything to hide then you don't need a password" to which I responded with stuff like:
"Oh I don't have anything to hide, you can freely explore the system when I log in, but I'll be there when you do. Damage control on hand so to speak."
Heh, then they kept threatening to "throw the computer out the window" The first time I slacked off and removed the password (I figured they might just be crazy enough to do it...) But then I figured as they wouldn't cause they like to use the pc too, so I restored my password. (And the funny thing was it was there for almost 2 months before the figured out I'd restored it.) Repeat threat, I called bluff and computer never moved. ( It's sat in that same spot for over 6 years now. ) I still ended up removing the password to appease their whining.

But now I have my own laptop. (Which I paid for.) To which I tell them (and pretty much everyone else who would so dare to touch it):
"DO NOT touch my laptop. Especially not the screen, cause finger prints are hard to get rid of."


Though despite me not having myspace or anything like that, I password protect just about everything I can. (I think my phone's about the only thing I haven't locked...)

Its too late for the screen bit. But otherwise my laptop is safe.
I never put up a password for admin though. I didn't have an admin account. I had a simple account, but when the PC messed up they blamed it on who else but the kids. Including me >_>
So they deleted all the accounts except for theirs and put a password but I can easily get through that with the old safe mode/system admin trick. XD
My main fear is if the router though. Its in the same room as the computer and if they mess that up I no longer have internet access.

i too have a myspace account and i have it in private to avoid all those annoying emails of people i don't even know they exist! i don't know how to work with it and that's why i'm not there often i always gotta ask my cousin to come over and help me :ashamed:

I think it's a threat to everyone.
Young and old alike.