[samscommunity] South Carolina family sues MySpace
- From: "WANDA WYLIE" <wwylie@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: <samscommunity@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Thu, 18 Jan 2007 21:45:20 -0500
MESSAGE FROM ST. ANDREWS MIDDLE SCHOOL:
Parents:
Someone sent this article to me. Many of your children have webpages
on the MySpace network. Take a few minutes to view their MySpace page.
Please remind them of Internet safety! The Richland County Sheriff's
Department has some safety tips on their website,
http://www.rcsd.net/media/tips/internetsafety.html.
South Carolina family sues MySpace
(New York) January 18, 2007 - An Upstate family is suing the internet
site MySpace.com. They say their teenage daughters were raped by a man
the girls met on the social networking site.
Two South Carolina girls say they're victims of the website MySpace.
Their family has filed a lawsuit against the networking site.
Their attorney says the 14 and 15-year-old sisters were lured to a
motel, drugged and raped by a man they met on the site.
There are other families with underage daughters also involved in the
suit. MySpace and its owner, News Corporation, are also being sued in
Los Angeles by families from New York, Texas, and Pennsylvania.
One lawyer says MySpace waited too long to put security in place to
protect underage users. They're seeking millions in damages.
MySpace had no immediate comment. The Los Angeles-based company has
developed educational efforts and partnered with law enforcement. It
also restricts how adults contact younger users. More changes are
expected this summer.
Local internet expert Don Cantrell says this should be a wake-up call
for all South Carolinians, "What makes this interesting is that it's in
our backyard. You hear these kinds of stories all over the US and so
many people say, 'I don't have to worry about that, I'm in South
Carolina,' but this shows it does hit home."
Cantrell offers workshops on how to stay safe on the internet. He says
parents shouldn't restrict their children from the site, just educate
them on how to use it responsibly, "The biggest tip we can give anyone
on these social communities - protect yourself. Take advantage of
security out there in place at these sites."
Cantrell says MySpace offers privacy and protection, but you have to
set it up. You can find it by going to "Account Settings" on your
homepage. Once you're there you'll find a list of options.
Finally, remember the advice you learned as a child: don't talk to
strangers.
"It's okay to communicate with friends," says Cantrell, "but to meet
someone online you don't know anywhere else can be a very big danger.
Why would a 21, 25, or 54-year-old be interested in a 14-year-old just
to be friends?"
Reported by Maggie Alexander
http://www.wistv.com/Global/story.asp?S=5956996
---------------------------------------------------------------
St. Andrews Middle School General Information:
School Phone Number: (803) 731-8910
Fax Number: (803) 731-8913
Principal's Secretary: Mrs. Doctor 731-8910
Principal: 7th Grade Administrator: Mr. Richardson 731-8910
Assistant Principal: 6th Grade Administrator: Dr. Holmes 750-4034
Assistant Principal: 8th Grade Administrator: Ms. Broome 750-4032
School Resource Officer: Deputy Wilson 750-4076
6th Grade Guidance Counselor: Ms. Dunning 750-4030
7th Grade Guidance Counselor: Ms. Shealy 750-4029
8th Grade Guidance Counselor: Ms. Hatcher 750-4036
Curriculum Resource Teacher (CRT): Ms. Miller 750-4031
Attendance Office: Ms. Spencer 731-8912
Database Specialist: Ms. Thomas-Smith 750-4027
Bookkeeper: Ms. Bailey 731-8910
School Nurse: 750-4028
School Cafeteria: 731-8914
Media Specialist (Library): Ms. Black 750-4072
St. Andrews Middle School Webpage:
http://sams.rcsd1.org
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