College Tribune | October 14th 2008
News Investigations
How safe is
Bebo
7
?
Karina Bracken looks at the recent proliferation of soft porn on Bebo Since its inception in January 2005, Bebo has been the most popular social networking site among young Irish internet users. It has been expanded and updated during the last three years, and was sold in March 2008 by its creators to AOL in a takeover bid thought to be worth about £417 million. As a website that attracts many underage users, Bebo has been aware of its responsibility in warning young users about the dangers inherent in having your own profile. Bebo maintains that its users must be 13 or older. It advises that those under 18 should keep their profiles private; meaning that only direct friends can view them and their personal information.
What if your profile is public? While Bebo has always been a vehicle for advertising, it appears that a seedier form of advertisement has recently taken shape. Many with public Bebo profiles have been inundated with comments from women claiming to have “enjoyed” that person’s profile and inviting them to chat via webcam. The comments come from mobile phones that are linked with Bebo via their internet facility. It is not only the pages of male members that are being targeted. The comments, though claiming to be from women, are gender indiscriminate. Kate, an MA student at UCD, said that she had to switch to her Bebo profile to private due to the amount of comments that she was receiving. However, changing her profile did not stop the unwanted messages. Kate added: “I actually closed down my entire Bebo page a few weeks ago. I just had enough.” Kate’s is not alone in her recent frustrations with Bebo. The College Tribune spoke to a number of students studying at UCD who have had similar experiences. One student, Emma, commented “Those stupid messages are so annoying. I had to cancel my account because of them.” If comments are continuing to be left on private pages, then Bebo’s security has somehow been breached. According to Bebo itself, when your profile is private only your direct friends can view your page and subsequently leave comments.
What are the comments? The following is a typical example of the comments being left: Amy Marie 101 I was just viewing your profile and I really enjoyed it. I’m inviting you to come watch my webcam http:// hot-profilez.info?rsS4u=3fMxT... or Copy and Paste ‘ Hot-Profilez.info ‘ I look forward to chatting with you. Louella Morita heyyyy hit me up if you wanna get freaky with this gal on cam, my msn is prestoyyesl@hotmail.com oxox MuAh xoxo Amanda Goldstein Hey, whats up? It’s Amanda.... I really enjoyed your profile, I have a very
nice one with some naughty pics you should come take a peek at www.livecamprofilez.com?k=MNvC5i48MP... XOXO If you choose to click on the link provided, Bebo automatically directs you to a “Security Warning” page which states: “You clicked on an invalid link which probably means someone is trying to trick you to go to a site and enter your Bebo username and password.” However, the URLS that are supplied do have “http://www.bebo. com” in the web browser’s address bar. The same page also warns people away from “enticing offers”. One of the sites advertised in these comments is xxxBlackBook.com which states on its homepage “We Guarantee You Will Get Laid”. It invites visitors to “Join the hottest adult sex community and get laid tonight”. While the homepage has pictures of men and women, it also has moving stills of one woman undressing and another masturbating. Considering that it is becoming common for would-be employers to check an applicant’s social networking page, these comments look all the worse.
What can be done? Due to the amount of comments she was receiving, Sinead Hughes, a former UCD student, sent an email to Bebo Support in which she complained about “the amount of spam comments being left on people’s pages usually from mobiles with content that appears to be an invite to watch porn or other such things.” In return, Hughes received a generic automatic reply from “Arwen I.”
» Hello Thank you for contacting us and for using Bebo. We sincerely appreciate your concern and understand your frustration with spam, inappropriate content, and any other unwanted comments. We are aware of this issue and apologize for the inconvenience it may have caused. I can assure you we are working to have the matter resolved as quickly as possible. In the mean time, there are a few steps you can take to reduce or eliminate the spam or ANY unwanted comments from your profile. 1. If it’s not already, you can make your profile private. 2. Approve all comments before they are posted on your profile. 3. Delete the comments. 4. Report Abuse. As advised, Hughes changed her profile to private as suggested but was still receiving invitations. Hughes explained how the comments were affecting her “because of this I have had to make my profile private which I would have preferred to have left public.” She is working abroad for the year so was using Bebo as a means of uploading photographs and writing blogs for her family
and friends to keep track off. Hughes added that it was a source of annoyance for other Bebo members because “it is inconvenient and inappropriate particularly given the amount of young members on this site.” According to Hughes, the comments left by soft porn websites are not the only problem. She cited a recent case
of a friend’s profile being deleted by Bebo administrators because “a spam link was sent from her account” without her friend’s knowledge. It appears that even deleting your profile may not even be enough. One student said that even though they had deleted their Bebo account all together, two months later they were still receiv-
ing “Friend Requests” from people that they didn’t know. “I am still receiving emails such as “Peggy Simonson <IbzuDXYgy886U6@netscape.com> has added you as a friend on Bebo”. I do not know any Peggy Simonson and when I typed her name into the Bebo search engine she appeared not to exist.”
Student Capital Fund All students in UCD are now invited to apply for a grant from the Student Capital Fund for capital purposes for the provision of student facilities. The Student Capital Fund is funded by surplus funds generated in the operation of the Student Club. Previous successful applications include: ● Equipment for Sports Clubs ● Replacement for computers for student media ● Lighting for playing areas ● Disability access facilities All applications or queries can be emailed to: elizabeth.cronin@ucd.ie or sent by post to the Forum office, Student Centre, UCD by 5pm, Friday, 21st November 2008. Note: Subject to funding still being available there will be another advertisement for funding proposals later in the academic year.