Facebook to crack down on safety

Following a consumer fraud investigation by the New York State attorney general, social networking site Facebook will increase its efforts to police pornography and inappropriate behavior on its site.

According to PCWorld magazine's web site, "Facebook users can now report complaints about pornography, harassment or inappropriate contact either by clicking on links on the Web site or by sending email to the abuse@facebook.com address. The company will respond to these complaints within 24 hours, and it will allow an independent examiner appointed with the approval of the New York AG, to monitor the company's compliance for the next two years."

The site has been under the microscope of attorney general's all over the United States due to the belief that the site is a haven for pornographers and sexual predators. This contention was confirmed when investigators posing as minors on Facebook were solicited repeatedly by adult predators.

Facebook is not the only social networking web site to come across such problems. MySpace has also been cited for its inability to effectively police predators. According to the Wired News web site, MySpace has taken steps to alleviate the problem. "Similar charges and investigations have also dogged MySpace, which has since released software to help parents monitor their child's usage of the site."