Selling sex online is nothing new. What is new, however, is where these companies have set up shop. It is the same place that your child spends hours visiting every day. MySpace. On the surface, advertisements on MySpace are tame and within acceptable limits. The ads sell MP3 players, cell phones, phone service and promote movies and music download sites. These advertisers arent the ones to worry about; it is the free, under the radar advertisers that should worry you. MySpace users have discovered a highly profitable way to sell their products. Sex traffickers have infiltrated MySpace by setting up profiles, adding themselves to your friends list, posting their pictures in blogs and forums, placing modeling classified ads, and setting up user groups. MySpace, once a virtual community, is now home to a large virtual sex market. Clicking on the images of beautiful men and women posted in the public access areas of MySpace takes you to a profile page where you are encouraged to check out my video, sign up to be my friend, or take a look at my pics. Once you click on the link, you enter sex club sites, web cam sex sites, subscription pornography sites, etc. This also occurs in the forums, classified ads and blogs no place is safe. Remember that MySpace uses a rating system (who has the most number of friends, who has the most profile views, etc.). The more friends you have on your list, the higher you rank. This means that when these advertisers submits a request to your child to be added to their friends list, chances are high they will be accepted. A door just opened in advertising cyberspace Clicking on ErinSexy19s photo, takes you to her profile page where you are invited to visit her webcam site, a free sex-cam site filled with ads for sex. And if that doesn't hook you, her friends list contains images of beautiful females in various states of undress. FrancineDees space was filled with sexually explicit photos. She encourages you to visit her website: a portal for purchasing access to pornographic video, images, etc. This type of advertising is not easily ignored. In fact it is the type of advertising that is sought out. Protect your child from the MySpace "advertisers" that seek your child's attention by becoming a proactive, internet savvy parent. Parents should become computer literate actively monitor your childs computer use. teach your child about online risks and the danger of posting personal information. tell your child not to respond to instant messages or emails from strangers. find out whether your child has a MySpace or other virtual hangout site and view that site if necessary contact MySpace to have your childs site removed. insure that your child chooses gender-neutral screen names that are not sexually suggestive or contain personal information. make sure your child never uses their login name in a chat room or forum. most importantly be vigilant and act on your suspicionsBe wise, be proactive. Protect your child from him/herself! |
