EU criticises social networking sites for relaxed privacy

Some websites used by youngsters do not automatically restrict who can see children's personal information according to a European Commission report.

It said that several major online companies, including social networking site Facebook, Xbox Live and YouTube had agreed to a set of principles to guard the privacy and develop age-appropriate services for under 18's.

But despite this, of the nine services investigated, the Commission found that with six services "a considerable amount of personal information was displayed to users beyond the minor`s approved contacts list" and only two, Habbo Hotel and Xbox Live, ensured that "personal and identifiable information" was visible by default only to the child's approved list of contacts.

Neelie Kroes, European Commission vice president said this showed social networking and other sites used by children needed to do more about taking their responsibility towards youngsters "seriously".

She said "Young people enjoy and derive great benefits from social networking online but are often not conscious enough of risks such as grooming."

The EC tested the profiles of minors to see if their details could be discovered when searching by name or by user-generated content, such as blogs, or via friends' profiles.

"For instance, once a minor's blog, individual videos, pictures, video channels or photostream are found (eg via an external search engine), access to the minor's profile is granted," the report said.

The report said that in many cases the information "did not always lead to the identification of minors and, therefore, it does not necessarily constitute an imminent safety risk."

However, Ms Kroes said the findings would be used to form a "comprehensive strategy" on internet safety for children that she will be announcing later this year.