The dangers of MySpace

[Leah]

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,372224,00.html

[LaurenB]

Re: The dangers of MySpace

My God.....That is so sad......... These kids just don't realize how Powerful the Web can be... They think that they are indestructible and have no real concept of the truly evil people that they are exposing themselves to.........

[Rescuedpanther]

Re: The dangers of MySpace

did ya see the one about the girl who killed herself cause of a make believe friend she had on her my space page?

[Ro-Ro]

Re: The dangers of MySpace

wasn't that actually a woman pretending to be a boy who "dumped the girl" and then the young girl committed Suicide.

[milkyway412]

Re: The dangers of MySpace

What I have to say is my own opinion so if you have a problem with it bring it to me. The statement "The dangers of myspace" is wrong. My DD has been on myspace now for 2 years. My 2 DS's are also on myspace and so am I. I got an account so I could at any time go and check on my DD. If the parents of these kids had been more active in what their child was doing on the internet there wouldn't be a problem right now. First of all my DD's account is private that means no one can get past the intro page. All they see is her pic and her name. Everyone she has as friends I know. I don't just let her go and do her own thing and she doesn't try cause she knows we are watching her. This is not myspaces problem but the parents of these kids. We as parents have to play a more active roll in our kids lives to protect them more. There are too many things different than when we were kids. My DD had a guy one time to try and be her friend. She called me in the room and showed it to me. I went and looked at it and then together we deleted him and also put him for spam. Thats all it takes. Yes this girl was naive and trusting but had her parents been paying attention she may still be here. Please don't blame the website because they offer protection for everyone to not get someone in their ring of friends without knowing who they are. Thanks for letting me say my peace and I hope I have not made anyone mad. I just want this to be honest and fair and not blame the wrong person/place here.

Debbie

[floridagirly68]

Re: The dangers of MySpace

Debbie I totally agree with you. These days doing something as simple as going to the grocery store or the bank can be dangerous. You have to know what is out there and be aware and know how to protect yourself. I don't believe it is myspace the actual website that is dangerous it's the type of people now that we have in this world. These things could just as easily happen on dating websites, or heck you don't know who actually lurks here. It's just a matter of common sense and protecting yourself and has Debbie said not be naive. Parents need to teach their children these things and tell them the real dangers of the world.

[anglebutterfly]

Re: The dangers of MySpace

my two teenage kids do not have a myspace account..i asked them if they wanted one..they said know..to many creepy people..i've seen their friends accounts and thier were quite a few naughty pic's of them...

[ghoward05]

Re: The dangers of MySpace

My 2 oldest sons have a myspace page and I know their passwords so I can check it at any time.

Our computer is in the living room, and the ones their rooms, are subject to a "search" whenever I feel it's necessary. (It was the number 1 rule when we put computers in their room).

I also have an account there as does my husband. Myspace has kept us in touch with our sons when they aren't here.

Alot of parents don't monitor their kids when they are on the web and that is the major problem.

BTW my sons are 17 & 15 and they share everything they do online with me. Making me get up and go to their rooms when they keep yelling "Hey, Mom you gotta see this" LOL

[nuisance]

Re: The dangers of MySpace

I got my myspace page when my DD started "Lurking" on there! I did it to spy on her. She knew it. She did my page for me, and will still update it every so often. I've learned alot of theings about her that she hasn't told me about. I discuss it with her, and hope she understands and listens.
Her Myspace luckily didn't turn to a horror story but when she turned 18, she had be "talking" to this 23 yr old in mississippi, she was going to move down there. I fought like hell to keep her here. He was going to pick her up, but his parents ended up getting her a plane ticket. She's adult I couldn't forcefully make her stay here. I told her I wanted all the info I can get on him. She gave me everything. even where his parents worked. His father was a pharmacist at a hospital there, I looked up the hospital on the internet and called! Father was suprised, but nice, turned out he was step-father, but thought of kid as his own son. Seems he'd had other girls he found on the internet come stay, and they never lasted. I had a background check ran on him, came back clean. DD went. We have friends in Alexandria Louisiana about an hour south of where she was going, so I made sure she had their home and cell numbers incase of emergency. They said they would go get her if need be. I paid a surprise visit on her about 3 weeks after she went, met him, spent day with them. He was "ok" but something about him I didnt' like. She was going to be there the 3 months of summer then come home. at 2 months her friend came over said she was worried about her, she'd just talked to her on the phone, and she was crying. I called, they had a fight, she was ok, didn't want to come home. I told her I'd get in the car and be there in 11 hrs, or get our friends to get her, and I'd pick her up there. She said no it's ok. I did talk to her everyday, and we IM'd on the computer all day also. About a week later she had me come get her. Her dad said he'd better not go because he'd probably kill the guy. Brought her home, she was heartbroken, but thank God survived. Seems he had verbally and physically abused her, didn't beat her, but pushed her a couple times. Thank God that's over and she learned her lesson, it could have been worse.

[janabanana]

Re: The dangers of MySpace

Oh Nu....... Thank God she came home safe and alive. I bet you worried 24/7.. I hope she learned something out of this.. That's the reason I won't do online dating.. I know there are success stories out there, but "I" need to know someone who knows the person. I have big trust issues. It's hard to believe strangers nowadays..

[kiop]

Re: The dangers of MySpace

I FEEL for the parents of that missing girl.. how horrible they must feel.. it makes me sick to my stomach to think about it.

[Stella]

Re: The dangers of MySpace

Myspace is nothing more than the internet, and we all learned a long time ago how dangerous it can be. weather it be myspace, face book, freecycle, craigslist, ebay, or message boards. it's a melting pot for strangers to meet, a place where people of all backgrounds come together. The internet is not a safe place for kids, not to be used as a babysitter. and that is what parents have done.

I have a myspace, I have passwords to my kids' myspace and my kids' email accounts.
they have to ask permission before logging in, I have the password to log in. they cannot get in if i am not home.

My DD16 who was 14 at the time had two people commenting each other on my daughter's page. the foul language, the ugliness, the crude language was embarrassing, they were going at each other on my daughter's page!! had nothing to do with DD.

my husband some in deletes all the messages, and said " this is Emily's daddy, if i see anymore comments on this page that I do not approve of, it will be shown to your parents, please take your issues somewhere's else"

and that stopped that.
this isn't brain surgery people. monitor what your kids are watching on tv, monitor what games they are playing, monitor who they are hanging out with, monitor what they are doing on the internet.