The pervasiveness of online “networking” sites has become irrefutable: MySpace, the Internet’s most popular Web-community site, currently has over 106 million registered users. Recently, families of five teenage girls, who claim they were sexually assaulted by men they met through MySpace, are suing the site. The lawsuits, all separate cases, allege negligence, fraud, and misrepresentation by the Web site.

MySpace has reacted by initiating a new feature called Zephyr, expected to be launched later this year. Zephyr will allow parents to view the name, age, and location details entered by their child on his or her profile.

I do not have a profile on MySpace or any other Web-community site. I will not deny that these sites have some merit; they are great networking tools and can provide exposure to music, art, writing, etc. that wouldn’t otherwise be available.

But I shy away from MySpace, because I find that network sites condone self-indulgence, false reality, and overall creepiness. I enjoy some level of anonymity and do not feel enthused about posting pictures of myself on the Internet or keeping in touch with people that I haven’t seen since elementary school.

So, I do think MySpace is sketchy, and I am not surprised that sexual predators have lured young girls via the site. But to blame the Web site in these situations is atrocious.

Sexual predators have molested children long before the emergence of the Internet. If these young girls did not have the common sense to know that it’s a bad idea to meet up with a complete stranger, then perhaps their parents should look at themselves to see who is truly responsible. Shouldn’t it be the job of the parents to know where their children are and whom they are with?

The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children says 33% of 13- to 17-year-olds reported that their parents know “very little” or “nothing” about what they do on the Internet.

More than likely, parents are left in the dark because their children are doing things that they know their parents wouldn’t approve of. However, a tool like Zephyr is not the answer in increasing Web site safety. Instead of shamelessly spying on their children, parents should open communication with them.

According to The San Francisco Chronicle, an attorney representing one of the families said that MySpace is like a daycare facility that doesn’t adequately protect its customers. Does it make sense for a Web site to have more liability for young teens than their parents?

No matter how many Zephyrs are created, a networking site with over 106 million users will never be safe or well-regulated, unless MySpace performs background checks on all of its users.

Even that wouldn’t make the Web site secure. The problem with MySpace profiles is the very reason why people are compelled to create one in the first place: you can become whoever you want to be. Fourteen-year-old girls can become 19-year-old women and 45-year-old sexual predators can become 15-year-old boys.

In this day and age, the dangers of online networking are well known. MySpace cannot take responsibility for the millions of people who join the site. It is up to the people who choose to create an online profile to do so in a safe and smart manner and look out for people who don’t.