Networking Sites, and Photo and Video Sharing Sites

MySpace, Bolt, Facebook, and Xanga are examples of Networking sites, which are sometimes referred to as “Social Networking sites.” Networking sites allow members to communicate with each other in a variety of ways. Most communication is unrestricted, and the sharing of information between members is not supervised. The sites feature questionnaires that encourage young users to reveal personal information, which is then posted online in a member profile. Members can also post photographs.

Posting images for others to see is the primary purpose of Photo Sharing sites like Photo Bucket and, Flickr, and Video Sharing sites like YouTube. Like networking sites, these sites also allow commentary and messaging between users.

Networking sites and photo and video sharing sites, like chatrooms, blogs and even online gaming sites, are places on the Internet where a child predator can meet and begin communicating with a young person.

Networking sites and photo and video sharing sites are also related to another area of growing concern regarding children and the Internet. This problem centers on the inappropriate use of digital cameras and web cameras (or “webcams”).