In an article entitled, “MySpace Predator Caught by Code” the cyber profiling and eventual busting of a sexual predator is chronicled. The culprit was captured after his name triggered a hit on a new Perl script designed to find convicted sexual predators based on name and zip code within a five mile radius. This code will be released by Wired News under an open-source license later this week according to one source. After the results were manually analyzed and photos were compared it was confirmed that over 700 convicted sex offenders had profiles on MySpace. In an ironic twist, the enhanced privacy features that have been implemented by the site proved to create stumbling blocks for this massive “man-hunt”. The very features that are supposed to protect children and other adults from these predators is actually aiding them in hiding from the law while reaching out to potential victims. So far only use of the program has resulted in the capture of only one man. Thirty-nine year old Andrew Lubrano started his profile in late 2005 after having served 9 years in prison on sexual offences perpetrated against young boys. Read more here on Lubrano’s capture and how MySpace is working with law enforcement to try to ban convicted offenders from creating profiles.

TeLLy: Unfortunately it is nothing new that predators browse profiles on MySpace looking for young people to befriend. However it is wonderful that the adminstrators of the site are trying to make it a safer place for people to meet and express themselves. Soon some of us will be able to show our real ages, instead of 89 or 14 years old to keep from being harrassed.