14-Year-Old Girl Assaulted On MySpace
June 21st, 2006
Written By: Adam Sussman
According to the Register a 14-year old girl was “sexually assaulted by someone she met through [MySpace]” and the mother of the girl is now suing them for $30,000,000.
The lawyer for the family is quoted as saying “MySpace is more concerned about making money than protecting children online [and] we feel that one per cent of that is the bare minimum, that they should compensate the girl for their failure to protect her online when they knew sexual predators were on that site”.
Over the last decade we saw people suing McDonald’s and other fast food restaurants on the account that fast food was making their children obese. Now we can be sure to see over the next few years more reports similar to this MySpace case.
I am not a parent (yet) so I am sure my opinion could change but my first thought when hearing a case like this is, whom does the responsibility lie with?
I believe first and foremost the primary responsibility lies with the parents of the children but considering computers and internet access are readily available almost everywhere parents can not be expected to handle this all on their own.
MySpace is a global social network and has become a breeding ground for sexual predators and in order to offer a “family safe” community they would need to implement more stringent verification processes to prevent children from accessing the site. Until that time they must share in part of the responsibility.
Though speaking from experience as a one time child who figured out a way to hack into anything that said “no children allowed” I know there are limits to how childproof one can make things.
The real issue with this is a societal one and that most parents do not really have a thorough understanding of the Internet. I see so many kids sitting on their parents computers freely surfing around with no localized auditing or child safe prevention equipment protecting them.
As the resident Internet guru for most of my friends and families I would ask them if they would allow their children to freely run around downtown Los Angeles by themselves or Disneyland, a professional football game, a public beach, or a large outdoor flee market without them first telling them exactly where they were going.
As great parents they would not, but why do they let them do this on the Internet?
I would then inform them of all the things they could do to protect their children and control their surfing experience but after 20 seconds of talking I would see their eyes start to glaze over and give me a daunting look.
To get them to surf the Internet without the help of AOL was a triumphant task let alone asking them to install and manage some sort of firewall.
We are witnessing a major transition with our society and how the internet is becoming intertwined with our lives. My parents never spoke to me about “safe surfing” and what is and is not appropriate to share because back when I was a kid the Internet did not exist.
In the course of just 15 years the Internet has embed itself into almost everything we do and young parents must become aware very quickly as to the ramifications of their children carelessly surfing the internet.
Thing I am sure I would tell my children.
- Never talk to strangers.
- Don’t give out personal information on the internet.
- Wear a rubber!
June 21st, 2006 11:19
I heard she was suing for 3M, which was apparently a figure her lawyers cooked up as 1% of myspace’s total value.
I too believe parents don’t know enough about the Internet. Most are afraid of computers, especially if they sit down with their kid and see them just whizzing from screen to screen. It’s enough to scare/confuse any PC-inept parent…
June 21st, 2006 11:24
Hey Will, your right on! As for the 30M, I am not sure where the Register got their facts from.
June 21st, 2006 16:50
[…] The MySpace topic I posted before got me thinking about the Internet and I started to think of this funny video by Comady Central’s David Chappelle. […]
July 8th, 2006 07:52
in my own personal opinion, I think that girl was more a victim of bad parenting than anything else. Shame on her for giving her personal information out. Shame on her for meeting a stranger that could have been ANYONE. Shame on her for (more than likely) having provocative images of her self , or a provocative reptrsentation of herself through per profile on myspace, as most young girls do… Above all this, however, SHAME ON HER PARENTS for not teaching her any better….
And I do believe I have a right to say this, as a mother myself…
July 8th, 2006 09:56
I have a 7 year old son . he is never allowed on the internet without our supervision . he does not have a computer in his room , nor does he have a tv . wake up people!!!! 30 million .. watch your kids , spend time with your kids , thats what they are there for , there kids . if you dont want the responsibility, dont breed ……………PARENTS ….BE RESPONSIBLE …
July 8th, 2006 10:32
as a parent i do not allow my children on the computer unless i am right here with them. the computers they use at school are monitored and not allowed to be used for myspace, yahoo or other chat sites. When we as parents allow our children to get online and not monitor them, especially after hearing all about online predators then we have no one to blame but ourselves. suing myspace is just an easy way out to make the parents feel less guilty. and what about the 14 yr old come on. she didnt know better than to meet someone she met online? although she didnt deserve to be sexually assualted she allowed herself to be put in an unsafe situation and cant blame myspace for her actions.
July 8th, 2006 11:10
I agree that parents are responsible for their children. Knowing where they are and with whom. I can’t say I always knew that, precisely, but because my children knew, for certain, that I or their mother would be checking, in one way or another, to see if they were where and with whom they were authorized. On occasion, we discovered they were not, and there were consequences.
For some kids, that might not be enough of a deterrent. I’ve known some who were determined to be in trouble, and nothing can be done to prevent that, short of chaining them up. However, determined and responsible parenting can make a huge difference to most. There are computer resources availabe to parents which make monitoring possible, and they should use them or quit complaining.
Furthermore, some who complain about computer access and its perils, freely expose their children to irresponsible alcohol use and even provide them with it. In my considered opinion, and from a lifetime of observation, that is a far greater peril to young people, not to mention adults, than exposure to the wilderness of the Internet.
July 8th, 2006 13:04
1) Why was she giving out info about herself to a stranger.
2) Why would anyone agree to meet some that they met in a chat room.
3) Where were her parents?
4) How is Myspace responsible if she gives out info of herself and then meets the person she freely gave the info to.
5) I hope this case gets thrown out
July 8th, 2006 14:04
This is a frivolous lawsuit. The tragedy with the girl may be real, the reality of predators may be real, but this could have happened just the same if she’d been hanging out in a shopping mall.
MySpace is a legitimage forum for networking amongst adults. The media wants to make it appear as some kind of sleazemonger that is not at all representative of its goals or common usage. I personally use it for business networking.
Any tool in our society can be misused. Some jerks will misuse MySpace and that is not the fault of MySpace - it is more the fault of the perpetrators, the gullability of the victims, and the absence of parental supervision.
July 8th, 2006 16:02
As a soldier in Iraq, I find Myspace to be a great way to share my expierences with my friends and family back home. The responsibility is both the parents and the girls. We as society forget how much a 14 year old knows about the internet nowadays. They are raised on it. She set herself up. Not very bright. And as for her parents, there is no excuse. They should admit responsibility for there lack of parenting and move on.
July 8th, 2006 16:07
As a mother I have the responsibility to know what my children are doing at all times. I monitor tv shows, internet usage. I hate myspace, it is full of nothing but profanity and sexually inappropriate and expletives. I think that they should be monitoring it more carefully, and it should be 18+ It is all the teens and 20-somethings on there who make it filthy. I have had teens that I know show me their sites on there - and I wonder where their parents were when these things were being published.
MINORS should not be allowed on myspace. Myspace should monitor the crap on thier site or make it rated for adults only. HOWEVER - yes, the parents are still responsible.
On a sad note I was recently in the children’s section of a local library in a ‘good’ neighborhood. Most of the kids were playing on cartoon game sites, but yet there was that pre-teen on myspace. I didn’t see her parents anywhere watching.
WATCH YOUR KIDS!!! Teach them right from wrong.
July 8th, 2006 17:02
My Space is no more liable for this, than McDonalds is for making someone fat.
Poor parental supervision, blame shifting, and a “quick buck” mentality, are the real culprits here.
July 8th, 2006 20:28
Umm….ok is this mother some kind of mental patient. If she really cared about her kid she would have taken care of her in the first place and monitored her computer and made sure her little brat wasn’t giving out private info & that her myspace account knew she was only 14. It is the responsibility of the parent to monitor their childern, it is not myspace’s responsability to raise your children and so by allowing your child to be placed in this position is simply bad parenting. This is by no fault of myspace’s when you sign up is needs your age so it can block predators, if you lie about your age this is what happens, the mother should be slapped in the face for not taking responsability of her child and for letting the computer raise her child. This is bullcrap parents should not be able to sue because of their inability to be a parent.
July 8th, 2006 22:22
I hope that this law suit gets tossed out.
I ask
1.were was her parents when she was spending hours on line chating with people she doesnt know.
2.were was her parents when she left to go and meet up with someone that she didnt know.
Its hard to say. I see it all the time teens in some families run the house hold. They tell there parents what they are going to do, and when they are going to do it.
People need to wake up, and start being parents. Monitor what your children are doing, who are there friends, were are they going, and so on.
July 9th, 2006 05:07
I do believe that my space should take soem of the blame for the assult on this girl, but which parent doesn’t have the common sense to keep an eye on their child when it comes to the internet. At some point and time they (her parents) must have heard their daughter speaking about the website and a alarm should have gone off. Knowing how unsecure myspace is just from all the publicity it gets on the news as a parent you must be a fool to turn a blind eye or just act plain old ignorant thats the parents fault no matter how you look at it. I’m not saying that they can’t sue but at times i think people are just plain greedy when they go over board with rediculous amount for compensation.
July 9th, 2006 07:33
I must completely agree with almost everyone who’s wrote on here. It is the parents responsibility, I just think it’s funny parents don’t mind that they can put their credit card online to buy something but when their child who they raised and loved are giving out personal information they think the internet is evil. Parents just need to wake up and realize that the internet can be as big as problem as drugs or alcohol now days. Just help your kids learn what is good and bad with the internet just like you do with drugs and friends…
July 9th, 2006 09:27
Here we go again; no one is responsible for their own behavior. At 14, this girl is well aware of what she is doing and would probably do the same types of activities in real space as cyber space. Good lord, how this world has changed ! I have held my kids accountable since they were 12. If you buy them a helmet and they take it off when they’re out of site, who’s to blame if they fall off the bike - the helmet company? The parents? I say, let’s tell these kids that they are responsible for the results of their behavior and not call them “victims” when they act like fools.
July 9th, 2006 11:00
Andrea,
Is your point the Internet is equivalent to drugs and alcohol? Are you making the argument that parents are hypocritical for using their credit cards to purchase goods and services online yet they tell their children the internet is an evil place and to not give out personal information?
July 9th, 2006 15:18
Myspace is the shit
July 13th, 2006 17:18
I agree 100% with Lindsay\’s comments:
The audacity for anyone to think that Myspace is even remotely at fault is ludicrious!! I\’ve never heard such bogus criticism before.. especially from individuals who have NO idea what their talking about..
Hmmm perhaps those people with such unfavorable undertones are feeling guilt from the disciplinary behavior they use on their kids, or the lack thereof..
Using Myspace.. TV. or video games as a scapegoat
for your own inadequate parenting skills.. is not only ignorant; but, far from the \’real truth\’
August 12th, 2006 05:21
30M, lol, that’s crazy amount. The fault is in its daughter, not in MySpace. Well she is taking benefit of the situation and trying to become wealthy.
August 16th, 2006 07:00
The Mother is out for a quick buck. She’s taking advantage of the fact Myspace is worth a millions. MySpace wasn’t the ones in the wrong doings, it was her and her daughter (AND OF COURSE THE 4 MEN) If she really was interested in her daughter well being, couldn’t she sue the boys who raped her? Maybe use that money for her to see a dr that deals with rape victims? She’s being greedy. Since when do we pay Parents LARGE amounts of $ because they weren’t taking care of their kids?
This is so terrible. It’s all about being responsible and obviously the girl was either too naive or just didnt’ care and the mother was too busy with her own life. If i didn’t come home from school right away or from whereever i was, I’d get my butt kicked. The mother is completely at fault here. i hope it gets thrown out too
August 16th, 2006 10:26
I am a parent of a little girl. I see this as the parents ducking out on their responsibility and as a way to make money. Myspace is just a place to get together and chat. Many Parents do not want to be parents. If something goes wrong, it is someone else’s fault and we can sue them. Fast food restaurants are being sued because their kids got fat on the food sold there. Hello, there have been reports for years stating what is healthy food. Most fast food places are not considered the healthiest food. This is also not news. The girl being raped is not Myspaces fault. Do parents really want to give someone else control of raising their kids? I have a good idea for some of these parents, find someone to adopt your kids so you do not have to be responsible anymore. Not that you are really all that responsible now.
September 5th, 2006 18:12
i dont really see how anyone can blame a website and expect to win. Of course yeah it was a way for it to happen but than again so is allowing your child to go anywhere whats next someone doing somthing at school and now the school is getting sued. actually i think that already happened. To be honest i think the parents should get in trouble for neglect. Stupid people make me mad.
September 12th, 2006 09:32
it is so myspace’s fault if we didnt have this site we wouldnt be in this mess duh! cause some kids dont even have their myspace privite and thats not safe.
September 12th, 2006 09:35
i think myspace should protect the kids on it not think about the money cause u dont want a kid bieng dead the next day
November 3rd, 2006 04:43
Hi, I am 14years old. My height is 165 and my weight is 48. what can I do to make my body become more healthy and like models? Please answer
November 4th, 2006 11:23
I ONCE HAD AN ACCOUNT WITH MYSPACE AND FROM WHAT I OBSERVED AND EXPERIENCED WITH IT I THINK I WAS AS SECURE AS IT COULD BE FOR IT TO BE A FREE WEBSITE. THE ONLY WAY YOU CAN REALLY BUT NOT ALL THE WAY PROTECT CHILDREN FROM THESE WEBSITES OR SEXUAL PREDITORS IS TO PUT A PRICE AND AGE LIMIT ON IT. WHAT DID THIS CHILDS MOTHER EXPECT? IF SHE HAD CONTROL OVER HER ABSENT MINDED CHILD AND MAYBE AND LITTLE STABILITY IN HER PARENTINGSHIP THAT WOULD NOT HAVE HAPPENED. MYSPACE IS NO WAY AT FAULT, IT BLOCKS MEN AND WOMEN OVER THE AGE OF 18 TO VIEW THE PAGES OF TEENAGERS AND CHILDREN 17 AND UNDER. I FIGURE THAT IS THE SAFEST THEY CAN GET UNLESS THEY SIT AND MONITOR EVERY SINGLE MOVE A CHILD 17 OR YOUNGER MAKES WHILE ON THEIR WEBSITE. MYSPACE HAS ALSO POSTED RULES AND REGULATIONS THEY ALSO GIVE TIPS WHEN THINGS ARE NOT DONE CORRECTLY ON THEIR WEBSITE. I SEE IT THAT THEY ARE DOING THE BEST THEY CAN DO AND THAT MOTHER NEEDS TO CLEAR HER EYES, GET THAT STICK OUT HER ASS, AND GETS SOME AUTHORITY IN HER CHARACTER. THIS IS OUTRAGEOUS!!!! IF YOU SEE ME AT THE DEFENSE OF MYSPACE, WELL HELL I AM BECAUSE THERE IS NO EXCUSE OR REASON FOR THIS TO BE HAPPENING.
November 15th, 2006 09:23
i like the way the guy sexually assulted her, she deserves it
December 3rd, 2006 08:37
I don’t think myspace should be punished. I have a myspace account. It is very secure. You can choose what is on there and who can see your profile. People have to request to be your friend and you can deny them. If the parents have a problem with this then they shouldnt let there daughther have a myspace. You need to talk to your children and know what they are doing. It is not Myspace’s fault this happened. It could happen ANYWHERE! Myspace should not be sued by the lack of knowledge and responsibility from the parent.
December 7th, 2006 01:18
Although parents can’t always moniter their children, they should at least teach them the right things. MySpace has nothing to do with it, it’s most likely poor parenting. The girl is fourteen, and I’m assuming that the mother thought that she was old enough to know what was right or wrong (or maybe the girl did, we would never know). MySpace is pretty secure, if you don’t lie about the info you put (such as age, etc.) and if you only talk to those you know (IN REAL LIFE).
It is wrong that she was sexually assaulted, but the man responsible already got punished. MySpace should NOT be sued. I agree with those who said that the mother’s looking for quick money. It’s ridiculous. I’m fourteen years old too, I keep my MySpace at friends only, and ignore those who try to befriend me (that I don’t know). It’s almost common sense. She chose to trust him, she chose to see him. It’s honestly her fault, she just doesn’t want to believe it.
December 12th, 2006 00:58
This really is no surprise. The real culprits here are the girl and her parents. It’s not expected that teenagers are to know everything, but surely, common sense is not too much to ask? What with all the awareness of ’stranger danger’ and such, this is happening.
As for the parents, where were they? Alright, they may not be able to be there 24/7 but this only shows their lack of responsibility for her. Had she known better, this might not have happened.
All in all, what’s done is done. Hope she learnt her lesson.
(The amount is ridiculous by the way. Can we sue the parents instead for lack of responsibility?)
January 18th, 2007 21:50
I agree with the people that say what about the parents? Should a 14 year old girl be on the computer chatting on a chat line? Or have her own website??
Perhaps at this day and age people might say, well the technology is out there, and the age limit for things keeps getting lower. More minors smoking than older ones, more drugs being used at 14 rather than 19.
The 2 things I must say. If the girl was educated enough to have her own website and myspace page then she probably watches television as much, then sees and hears about predators on the internet. She should not be giving out personal info and especially a personal meeting ???? Honestly what was she thinking? Where were the parents? They allowed this to happen?
Or perhaps they were not educated enough themselves, but the average human being I would hope, thinks that its not okay for a 14 year old girl to go on the internet make a website, talk to strangers and meet with them?!
This is the parents fault as well. NO peer pressure, if any 1 or 2 teenagers can say no to something, than she can say no as well. The parents feel guilty now, so they need to blame someone else for their mistake.
The funniest thing is that myspace specifically says: ” DO NOT GIVE OUT YOUR PASSWORD OR PERSONAL INFORMATION “. But apparently that memo just didn’t appear on her page, and just everyone else who has an account.
Yes, it is sad she was assulted, but common, if you were a parent, would you let your 14 year child on the net to create a website in which she talks to people she doesnt even know and meets with them??? COMMON SENSE. Was not used here.Yes harsh, but its reality.
We do not live in the land of the faries where everything is perfect and everyone is nice. Thank you now… and welcome back to earth.
September 11th, 2007 21:06
World is not a safe place anymore!
September 13th, 2007 12:58
^^ squaretan, since when did Earth become a safe place?
j/p bro.
October 3rd, 2007 11:05
I think he should be punished,but in a way i think he shouldn’t be punished because it ain’t his fault she gave out her information?
October 13th, 2007 04:45
i dont think earth is safe anymore!!!!! or Is it???
January 6th, 2008 07:47
….i think this:
1. the 14 year old believes that “all adults are lame!” and “adults are so, old and so mistrusting”…along with “things like this don’t happen nowadays or would happen to me, I’m smart!”…
a. i know this because a few years ago, a friend of mine, cyn’s daughter, who was only 12 was ditching school and going to the library to pass time away. not a SCHOOL library, no, a PUBLIC library. we both told her that a person could use anything to lure her into a car and whisk her away. to prove the point, my friend cyn, had her then boyfriend re-enact the scene and soon, her daughter realized if in fact that would ever occur…indeed no one could save her for…sound does not travel too well in cars.
b. another friends daughter was walking with her 3 friends from a park one day….being followed but feeling ‘girl power’ will prevail…ignored it. when it came time for all the girls to go home, the one girl was followed to a public school…this was at 5pm…she was walking with her friends and the other 2 live before this particular girl so, the last girl walked alone…all the while the man was following her…finally when she saw a groups of boys she knew and called out to them, the man took off *yes…she was running the whole time*…she came back to the house and literally collapsed from fear. my first question was “why didn’t you call me? you know i am always home, i can always come pick you up”….guess what the answer was? “i didn’t believe it was happening to me and when i realized it was real, i was too numb to think what to do next…i didn’t even think about the cell phone”…
2. parents nowadays are a dual income…it’s very hard to figure which battles to take on…trust…fun…”quality” time…however, when is the kid *who is on the computer* actually spending quality time when they are on the computer?….parents…you need to spend some quality time…like play playstation 2 with them, surf the net with them, go watch movie with them…earn their trust and in turn, you can only hope for the same….
3. parent(s) claiming they “don’t know how to use a computer”…seriously…when you started that job recently or in the past…did you DIVE right in? NO? really!? you got TRAINED!? omg! so you do have a brain? ok…then you can learn how to use a computer. My hubby, i love him to death, but he uses this as an excuse. I said to him “hon…if you can work that remote the way you do…YOU CAN USE A COMPUTER!”….to this day…he tells me to “look something up”…but he can’t complain when i veer off to find some shoes instead!
4. Children/kids…need to feel that you understand them…i have neighbors kids that come to me and tell me things and in turn, i try and tell them what I would do but that they have to make the best decision themselves…that is part of growing up…i do point out what i would NOT do…i have confronted a few of their “enemies” and made some “enemies” along with them, but being almost a “big sister *think 36* you gotta back them up you know? then, they feel you truly do “love them” and in turn, you earn their trust…now this only works if you tell them from the get go “if you tell me something that raises a red flag, i will let your parents know eventually you know that right? and yes…i do want you to be friends with my 2 year old and earn her trust but you BETTER tell me something if it raises red flags!”….
long story short…earn trust…be trusted…trust them…BUT MONITOR and EXPLAIN WHY! Spend time…play with them…educate them…be a parent…soon, they will be married and off on their own…and you will realize you don’t even know them…trust me..i’m one of those and my mom and i are trying really hard to understand one another…oh and I am teaching her how to use the computer!
February 6th, 2008 00:17
Gosh darnit.. I wasn’t going to say anything but by the time that I read through every (EVERY) comment I have to reply. I am a father of two and yet neither are able to understand how to read or write I already have some things in place. Yes, I cheated a bit, I am a network engineer. So, parents, use linux, edubuntu prefered and then look up dansguardian. Both are free. You will find that it gets you close to there. The next step is to be a parent and know where your kids are. Like I said my kids are young but I have friends that their kids are not and we just had this discussion about myspace. I think it is fine for the average adult but not for kids. Should myspace pay…??? big heck no. Why? Well, there are safeguards. Are they breakable? Of course and easily. My friends daughter is 12 but her myspace was created by saying she was 16. Oh an how my friend got on her about lies…. Long story short answer. Parents. We live in hard times with the internet and cancers that we call crime, but we have to know what comes first. Our children.. Not money, fame, etc… It is the little people that will help us grow. Take a look at the software that I have put above. It will help… even if it is a little.