MySpace hit with online predator lawsuits

Four families have sued News Corp, the owner of MySpace, for allegedly not adequately protecting younger users against online predators. The families had five teenage girls from 14 to 15 years old who met MySpace members and were sexually assaulted.

The families have filed separate lawsuits in Los Angeles Superior Court with the help of two Texas-based legal firms. One of the firms has experience in suing MySpace and filed a $30 million dollar lawsuit last year on behalf of a 14-year-old girl who was sexually assaulted by a 19-year-old man she met on the website.

Last April MySpace hired former federal prosecutor Hemanshu Nigam to security measures. The popular social networking site is developing a tool that will let parents see who their kids are talking too, but MySpace says it will not be implemented until this summer.

MySpace lets teenagers as young as 14-years-old register and create profile pages, miniature websites that list names, phone numbers and hobbies. Full profile information - which include names, schools and hobbies - for 14 and 15-year-old members are only available to members who are in the teenager’s friends list. Other members only see a basic profile.