REASON #1,000,001 TO AVOID MYSPACE - IT'S COTTON-PICKIN' TIME!!

Finally, someone takes action against MySpace for the thing that most defines - and implicates - them... virtual freeform anarchy. And the contents of the suit squarely hit the mark. I agree with every one of the allegations:

The lawsuit claims that the Web site does not require users to verify their age and calls the security measures aimed at preventing strangers from contacting users younger than 16 "utterly ineffective."

"MySpace is more concerned about making money than protecting children online," said Adam Loewy, who is representing the girl and her mother in the lawsuit against MySpace, parent company News Corp. and Pete Solis, the 19-year-old accused of sexually assaulting the girl.

Absolutely. If they want any kind of security and assurance, they need to follow some of the more common child restraints like those at Yahoo! which I believe use a parent's credit card as verification of a minor's age (for an email/groups account).

Hemanshu Nigam, the chief security officer for MySpace.com, said in a written statement: "We take aggressive measures to protect our members. We encourage everyone on the Internet to engage in smart web practices and have open family dialogue about how to apply offline lessons in the online world."

Hogwash! Nigam knows that there are literally hundreds of users under the minimum supposed 'required' age for Myspace of 14, using fake identities and logging in, vulnerable to guys like Solis who also faked his identity and age to gain the trust of a minor child.

Attorneys general from five states, including Texas, have asked MySpace.com to provide more security, the lawsuit said. Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott sent a letter to the MySpace.com chief executive officer May 22, asking him to require users to verify their age and identity with a credit card or verified e-mail account.

And still, nothing. Maybe they'll listen to a lawsuit, or two, or many?!?!

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