The Time magazine article linked in the title of this post summarizes a recent research study that looked at 500 MySpace profiles of American 18 years olds. "Nearly 54% of the selected profiles revealed details about risky sexual lifestyles, drug addictions and violent encounters with peers."
The Time summary points out that the research approach employed here seems unrealistic, but still shows that teens may be oversharing personal information on the Internet. Are your children being safe on social sites such as MySpace, Facebook, Xanga, and others? Internet predators are real. Time magazine had another article titled "How safe is MySpace?" which said "a survey conducted by the Crimes Against Children Research Center at the University of New Hampshire found that nearly 1 in 5 kids had received unwanted sexual solicitations over the Internet. And a March 2006 survey partly funded by the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children reported that 14% of teens have actually met face to face with someone they had known only through the Internet. "
Ask to see your children's profile, and read the comments that others leave on your children's pages. This is not an invasion of privacy because your children are sharing this information with strangers on the Internet. Talk to your kids about their safety and the dangers of meeting people they know only from the Internet, especially if this person is a romantic connection.
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