MySpace sued over predator assaults
I just read about how four families are suing MySpace after their children were assaulted by someone they met on the site. I hate this sort of stuff because something horrible happened and there is no clear answer to who is accountable and why.
There are two parts to this problem.
The first part is that the assailants are misrepresenting themselves on MySpace, taking advantage of MySpace’s lack of foolproof identity controls. They may be misrepresenting their age, race, or name as well as their lifestyle and personality.
In some way MySpace is at fault here because their system cannot clearly identify who is who. However, that goes for any and all web sites, too doesn’t it? The most locked down sites, the ones like Paypal that connect you with a bank account, are still not foolproof.
The second part of the problem is that the girls are agreeing to meet these people who they admittedly don’t know. They’re being taken in by the person online, and then agree to meet them offline, assuming that they’re the same charming person.
This second part, in my opinion, has nothing to do with MySpace. MySpace in no way enables this meeting to happen, nor encourages it. This is interpersonal manipulation, and could happen anywhere.
The third part (which goes without saying) is that the evil encounter takes place. Thankfully, at least some of the assailants are in jail. Hopefully they get what they deserve.
But on a larger level, could this be MySpace’s fault? Should they be held accountable? The suit claims that they were “negligent, reckless, fraudulent, and misrepresentative”. Essentially, the suit is saying that MySpace didn’t take action to head off these types of situations that it must have been aware of.
I’m trying to find an offline equivalent of this. Would it be like going to a bar and meeting someone, being assaulted, and then suing the bar because the assailant used a fake ID to get in? That might be analogous, and the bar might be at fault.
However, I don’t think there is a law saying that you have to represent yourself accurately online. Does anybody know?
The worst part about this is that there are people assaulted all the time by people they know, in situations that they have no control over, simply because the assailant is evil. It’s a horrible, horrible thing. But that’s not what’s happening here. What’s happening here is preventable…teens should know better than to trust people they don’t know. It’s hard enough to trust the people we do know.
No matter where you are, online or offline, agreeing to meet someone you don’t know is a highly risky behavior. My daughter isn’t quite old enough to talk to about this yet, but when she is I’m going to make it clear that if you don’t know who somebody is, be super careful.
The result of this case might be a big deal for the future of social networking sites. If MySpace is held accountable, then we’ll probably see a whole lot of changes in privacy policing.
The question is, can a web site be held accountable for the actions of its members?
Make them Care! - Struggling to communicate the value of your product or service? I'm writing a new book that shows you how to make people care about your product or service by clearly communicating the most important bits. For designers and marketers creating product web sites. Find out more.
Links to this Post
Comments
1. Josh 10:35pm, Thu 18th, 2007
I don’t think a website should be held responsible for the actions of its member unless the website was aware of the member and did not take steps to remove that member’s account / report to the proper authorities (i.e., if MySpace, or any other site, was aware of a predator operating on their site and was willfully negligent, then yes, they could have a measure of responsibility).
Otherwise, this is akin to someone being abducted in a MacDonald’s parking lot. Would you sue MacDonald’s for not properly securing their parking lot? No. That would be frivolous and silly.
2. NatC 4:19am, Fri 19th, 2007
Misrepresenting oneself in a social network is probably something everyone does. Even last.fm allows to remove tracks that you listened to but do not match the image that you want to show off of yourself.
The problem here is really family education. My daughter is four and I already explained to her that not everyone we will meet on the way home from school is good.
Children who are not given or do not follow such an advice are at risk, wether they meet people via Internet or in the street.
OK, you can feel like you know better those people you met on a social network, but that’s also in the same way than for penpals for example.
In my opinion, there’s no legal issue with MySpace. Nevertheles, I think that suing them is a really wise thing – yes! – since it allows a lot of buzz to be made around those terrible situations, and will raise the awareness of the other kids.
3. liezie 6:55am, Fri 19th, 2007
I’m trying to find an offline equivalent of this.
How about penpals? When I was younger there were these magazines where you could list yourself as penpals. Sometimes these “mail-only” contacts would mature into friendships and you agreed to meet.
As a parent you can insist that the first meeting is held at home when you are home.
Anyhow, it’s pretty clear that the website is not responsible. The attacker is responsible.
But I wonder, would this still be the case if the website promoted itself as a safe-zone for children (you see them more and more) with security checks and everything. What if something similar would happen?
4. Randy Charles Morin 9:44am, Fri 19th, 2007
This is great news. If they win, then all the battered wives who met their husband at church can sue the Pope.
5. MH 2:28pm, Fri 19th, 2007
Like other commenters, I don’t understand the hand-wringing at all: The assailants are at fault. And the bar analogy is not quite right because the reason IDs are checked is because of the drinking age, not because of the personality of the individual in question.
Isn’t it the internet in general that permits such misrepresentation? What does MySpace have to do with it? The existence of this case has more to do with lawyers and state of the justice system than it does MySpace.
6. Broom 5:30pm, Fri 19th, 2007
Quote: The third part (which goes without saying) is that the evil encounter takes place. Thankfully, at least some of the assailants are in jail. Hopefully they get what they deserve.
have you heard about the case in Vermont? a guy admited to sexualy abusing a 4 year old boy and got probation. that state has some issues.
as far as myspace goes, the parents of these kids should be help more responsible than myspace. its part the parents, and part the asailant. MySpace was just happend to be the middle man and was mis-used.
7. araba kiralama 4:54pm, Sun 4th, 2007
araba kiralama