Orange County Computer Lawyer Blog

Facebook Refuses to Install Panic Button in Response to Child Sexual Abuse Risks

Facebook has refused to buckle down under immense pressure from our law enforcement friends from across the pond, but should Nevada personal injury lawyers be worried at the site’s refusal to install such buttons on its pages?

Last week, the world’s number one social networking site said it would not bow down to pressure from law-enforcement officials and child safety groups in the UK. That pressure began to mount after the death of a teenager, who met her murderer on Facebook. Ashleigh Hall went to meet who she thought was a teenage boy she had befriended on Facebook. The “boy” turned out to be a serial rapist, who proceeded to rape and murder Hall. The case has shaken child safety groups in Britain, and the pressure was on Facebook to install a so-called “panic button.” Facebook has refused these suggestions, and has been criticized vociferously for it.

So, is the criticism justified, and should Facebook proceed to install such buttons on its website? After all, many other social networking sites, including the newly rejuvenated MySpace, have such buttons. It’s important to understand that the panic button does not provide the user a direct link to the nearest police station. That would have been the kind of panic button that Nevada personal injury lawyers would have liked. The panic button that’s currently in use on several social networking sites merely provides the user some resources they can use to understand the kind of danger they could be facing.

It’s not exactly the kind of help that a child who is at risk from a predator is likely to make use of. According to child safety experts, most teens and preteens live under the assumption that bad things only happen to other people, and not to themselves. They may be less likely to make use of such materials.

More than a panic button, Nevada sexual abuse lawyers believe that checks on the age of children using Facebook would be helpful in preventing abuse of some of the most vulnerable social networking users. Facebook also makes it far too easy for sexual predators to sign up with different accounts, and use these to stalk or harass potential victims.