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The investigation by web usability consultants at User Vision, one of Europe sleading independent user experience companies, found that Facebook, Bebo and MySpaceall lacked targeted, clear information about online security for under 18s.
People are more worried than ever before about identity theft and protectingchildren from predatory adults, yet social networking sites which rely on usersgiving out as many details about themselves as possible have never been morepopular.
Sites such as Facebook, Bebo and MySpace have become lucrative targets for advertisers.
The Government has also announced today (TUESDAY) it is to take action to protectchildren from online material. It has appointed psychologist Dr Tanya Byron to leada study into what action needs to be taken.
User Vision say all three sites have a social and corporate responsibility toreplace at least one-in-50 views of the adverts that occupy highly visible spaces onsocial networking sites with a warning about online safety on the profiles of theirmembers who are under 18.
Emma Kirk, strategic director of User Vision, said: All three of these hugelypopular social networking websites should be doing more to protect the young peopleusing their sites. They have a social and corporate responsibility to do so.
We were particularly concerned to find that the privacy policy and the informationon staying safe were presented by two of the three sites in almost identical wayswhether we joined as adults or when a child signed-up.
Security on social networking sites is complex and it s often all or nothing. Forexample on Bebo you can have open or closed profile, but nothing in between.
As kids often sign up to these sites to get as many friends as possible, securityneeds to be presented in a usable way that kids will understand so they immediatelyunderstand the issues and situations they re putting themselves into.
During the User Vision evaluation, one of the team signed up to MySpace giving onlyhis name and city location yet almost every morning he found at least three emailsfrom people he did not know asking to be his MySpace friend .
In another example of quite how many friends someone can accumulate on MySpace, thesinger Lily Allen has a running total of nearly 420,000 friends.
User Vision found that Facebook had offered the least effective privacy policy interms of usability. Whether someone signed in as an adult, a college student or achild the terms of use and privacy policy were the same all required the user toclick a link to read more about privacy.
There was no additional or different text for children that highlights how importantthis information is.
Emma Kirk said: Within the Facebook privacy policy there is a section on the safeuse of the site which has a good question and answer section. The problem we haveidentified is it s just not visible enough so is unlikely ever to be read by someoneunder the age of 16.
On Bebo, the User Vision team found that there was an option for new users to hidetheir age, but no explanation for children to show why this would be important.
The Bebo privacy policy is tucked away at the bottom of the screen below a save &continue button, leading User Vision to conclude few users would see it or read on.
However, once a Bebo user begins to edit or personalise their profile the siteautomatically produces clear safety tips for the under 21s and also makes clear thattheir age will not be displayed publicly if they are under 18.
Emma Kirk added: What we found surprising about Bebo was that it had gone to thelengths of filming a high quality video on privacy, but it is hidden in a link atthe bottom of the page that very few children would ever see.
User Vision s evaluation found that MySpace was similar to Facebook in not givingany prominent security warnings to children users. It was the only one of the threesocial networking sites to ask users to give their postcode, a policy Emma Kirk saidraised particular security and privacy questions especially for children.
However, at the stage where a new user on MySpace reaches the point of beingencouraged to upload some photographs there is a series of warnings given about therisks.
Emma Kirk said: Children and young adults in their teens aren t overly concernedwith their information privacy. So the issue here may not be how these sites wordtheir privacy policies but rather one of making privacy a concept that is accessibleto teenagers.
Individually targeted advertising is becoming an increasingly prevalent tactic onthe web, so social networking sites could target their privacy advertising at theirusers they know to be under 18.
At the end of the day, choice would still be with the user but at least theywould be better informed.
ABOUT USER VISION
User Vision is one of Europe s leading independent user experience consultancies,specialising in usability testing, web accessibility, eye tracking, user needsassessments and expert usability evaluations. The company tests and improvesusability across many platforms including websites, interactive TV, software, mobilephones and keyboards. As well as offline advertising, TV commercials, shop layoutsand computer games.
At the heart of User Vision s work lies the basic concept that a product that iseasy to use gives a business competitive advantage. The company takes astraightforward, practical approach to user needs analysis, problem solving andusability testing, leading to effective design solutions.
Launched in 2000, User Vision has grown organically and remains free from venturecapital. The company has pioneered usability and accessibility for many yearsworking with organisations like the BBC, HSBC, Nokia and the DTI. Operatinginternationally in Dubai, Spain, France, Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany, the UK andIreland, User Vision is a powerful, independent force in usability andaccessibility.
