Hemanshu Nigam will be responsible for helping to make the News Corp-owned networking site a safe environment for children.
In recent months, MySpace has faced criticism from parents and law enforcement officials alike for not doing enough to combat online predators and keep the site free from pornographic content.
“Hemu is a proven leader in online safety and security,” Chris DeWolfe, chief executive of MySpace, said. “We are fortunate to have him join MySpace, help us educate the public and protect our members' safety and privacy.”
Joan Irvine, executive director for the Association of Sites Advocating Child Protection, praised the move by MySpace.
“[The] ASACP is gratified that a high-profile site like MySpace is taking concrete steps to protect children online” Irvine said. “We have met with Mr. Nigam, and expect his involvement to boost MySpace’s efforts on behalf of young users. However, not all sites have the capacity or motivation to take such steps, so it remains vital that parents take advantage of available technology and resources to monitor their kids’ online activities.”
Nigam, who will start May 1, was plucked from Microsoft, where he was the director of consumer security outreach and child-safe computing. Prior to that, he was a federal prosecutor who worked on a number of Internet child exploitation cases. He also has advised Congress and the White House on issues of online child safety and cyberstalking.
To further bolster its efforts to make MySpace a child-safe online forum, the 65 million-member site will launch an ad campaign in conjunction with the Advertising Council and the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children to educated parents and children about safety online.
MySpace also has restricted access to the site to people over 14 and prevented users from viewing personal information about members who are under 16 without the member’s permission. All users under 18 now must read a safety tips guide prior to registering.
Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal, who recently demanded that the site do more to protect children, welcomed the recent moves by MySpace, but reiterated that more work was necessary.
“A public-safety campaign is a welcome step toward protecting children from pornography and predators — and people looking for sex — but must be followed by more significant, specific measures that we have also urged MySpace to take,” Blumenthal said.