Many children use social-networking sites, unaware of how
to protect themselves
The EU says many children using social-networking sites don't use privacy settings, making them vulnerable to stalkers and other harassment.
EU data show that 77 per cent of the bloc's 13- to 16-year-olds have profiles on social networks, while among 9-to-12-year olds 38 per cent are on sites like Facebook or MySpace.
Twenty-five per cent of those children don't use privacy setting, and one-fifth of those with public profiles display their phone number or address.
The EU's Commissioner for the Digital Agenda Neelie Kroes said Monday, "These children are placing themselves in harm's way, vulnerable to stalkers and groomers."
Kroes urged social networking sites to automatically make profiles created by minors accessible only to people they are online "friends" with.
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