NEW YORK (AFX) - Four families have sued News Corp. and its MySpace social
networking site after their underage daughters were sexually abused by adults
they met on the site, lawyers for the families said Thursday.
The law firms, Barry & Lowey LLP of Austin and Houston-based Arnold & Itkin
LLP, said families from New York, Texas, Pennsylvania and South Carolina filed
separate suits Wednesday in Los Angeles Superior Court, alleging negligence,
recklessness, fraud and negligent misrepresentation by the companies.
"In our view, MySpace waited entirely too long to attempt to institute
meaningful security measures that effectively increase the safety of their
underage users," said Jason A. Itkin, an Arnold & Itkin lawyer.
The lawyers said the plaintiffs include a 15-year-old girl from Texas who
was lured to a meeting, drugged and assaulted in 2006 by an adult MySpace user,
who is currently serving a 10-year sentence in Texas after pleading guilty to
sexual assault.
In response to ongoing concerns about predators, MySpace on Wednesday
announced it has been working on software that lets parents see some aspects of
their child's online profile, including their age. The company has also placed
restrictions on how adults may contact younger users on MySpace.
MySpace did not immediately return calls for comment.
News Corp. shares hit a new 52-week high of $24.03 in morning trading on the
New York Stock Exchange before slipping back to $23.96, up 26 cents.
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