Connecticut social-sites bill
p2pnet.net news:- Connecticut attorney general Richard Blumenthal wants his state to be the first in the US to regulate so-called social networking sites with a bill that would require them to verify users’ ages and force minors to obtain parental consent before posting profiles.
“There is no such thing as a fool-proof, magic bullet system,” Reuters has Blumenthal saying, “but this one provides a much greater degree of security for children and it empowers parents to protect their children.”
Ten to 20 other states are also, “considering similar legislation,” according to his office, says the story, going on:
“In Connecticut, at least six alleged sexual assaults involving older men and underage girls have been tied to MySpace in the last year, while there have been dozens of similar arrests nationwide, Blumenthal said.
Applicants would, “submit a driver’s license or other form of official identification, and the Internet site should use public information on record to check the age, address and date of birth,” adds Reuters. Sites that fail to verify ages and fail to obtain parental permission to post profiles of users under 18 would face civil penalties of up to US$5,000 per violation.
Also See:
Reuters - U.S. state considers MySpace age check, March 8, 2007
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Tired of being treated like a criminal? They depend on you, not the other way around. Don’t buy their ‘product’. Do bug your local politicians. Use emails, snail-mail, phone calls, faxes, IM, stop them in the street, blog. And if you’re into organizing, organize petitions, organize demonstrations and then turn up on your local political rep’s doorstep, making sure you’ve contacted your local tv/radio station/newspaper in advance. Don’t just complain. Do something!
March 12th, 2007 at 12:18 pm
This would effectively destroy social networking sites in the areas covered by the legislation.
This is another example of government putting its nose in where it doesn’t belong. The free market’s solutions are almost always the best solutions. MySpace should find ways to minimize this, not a Senator.
Will we allow ANYTHING to pass legislation just because the words “protecting children” are attached?
March 12th, 2007 at 12:55 pm
to identify themselves to those sites
March 13th, 2007 at 12:06 am
Not only will they find drivers licenses but home addresses as well.
This proposed solution is no solution at all. It presents more headaches than it takes care of. If I were Myspace I would be considering offshore servers and prehaps a corporation headquarters change to some other country. I don’t think moving states would help.
March 13th, 2007 at 10:55 am
This law is essentially dead in the water. Unless the website is based in the small state of Connecticut it has no problems. I don’t know many social networking sites that are based there.