MySpace agrees to provide the names of convicted sex offenders on its site
May 21,2007--Attorney General Paul Morrison demanded today that MySpace, a social networking Web site, turn over names and other information about convicted sex offenders the company has identified on its website. MySpace has agreed to provide Morrison with the information.
In Kansas, Morrison will share the information about registered sex offenders with law enforcement. The data will be used to look for potential parole violations by offenders who may be barred from using a computer or contacting minors.
"Last year, I shared my concern about social networking Web sites, such as MySpace," Morrison said. "They have become a tool for sexual predators and are increasingly unsafe for our kids."
MySpace has confirmed that Sentinel Tech Holdings has already identified thousands of registered sex offenders as members of the popular social networking site. MySpace has deleted these users from its site but has preserved information about them and will provide it to the attorneys general.
"I'm pleased that MySpace has agreed to turn over the identities of sex offenders who operate on this site," Morrison said. "This information will assist law enforcement in enforcing parole restrictions on certain offenders and keeping our families safe."
MySpace will continue to search its site for registered sex offenders, and will give the states information about all offenders found on its site including their email and IP addresses. Morrison commends MySpace for taking this important safety step.
The fact that many sex offenders have used MySpace underscores how dangerous social networking sites can be for children, Morrison said. However, Morrison remains concerned about other sex offenders who may be on the site using an alias and misrepresenting their age.
This year, Morrison successfully pushed Senate Bill 204 which required offenders to register their email addresses and online identities with law enforcement.
"Using the information collected from offenders and MySpace will allow us to better track dangerous offenders online and in our communities," Morrison said. "As Attorney General, I will continue to find innovative ways to crack down on sexual predators on the Internet."
Since May of 2006, North Carolina Attorney General Roy Cooper and Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal have been leading a group of attorneys general from 52 states and territories including Kansas who are pushing social networking sites to do a better job protecting children from threats such as sexual predators and inappropriate content. Morrison joined this working group as soon as he took office in January 2007.
Because of the attorney generals' push, MySpace has previously taken other steps to improve safety on its site such as screening profiles for inappropriate content and making certain profiles private. The attorneys general are continuing to urge MySpace to require parental permission for children to be on its site, among other safety steps.