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A Texas judge has dismissed a lawsuit against MySpace that had blamed the popular Web site for not establishing enough safeguards to protect underage users.

The family of an underage girl — referred to as “Julie Doe” in the lawsuit — had sued MySpace last year after she lied about her age and was sexually assaulted by a man she met on MySpace.

But U.S. District Judge Sam Sparks ruled Wednesday that MySpace, like other online forums, should not be held responsible for what happened. “If anyone had a duty to protect Julie Doe, it was her parents, not MySpace,” he wrote.

The decision, which could help establish legal boundaries that will govern the booming social-networking industry, comes as a slew of Web sites, including MySpace and Facebook, entice teens and preteens to hang out with their friends online and meet new ones. More than half of U.S. teenagers 12 to 17 who go online use social-networking sites, according to a recent survey by the Pew Internet & American Life Project.

Some parents and lawmakers have been critical of the online communities, raising concerns that they allow sexual predators to disguise themselves and target young children. The lawsuit dismissed Wednesday is one of several facing MySpace; last month, four families also sued MySpace after their underage daughters were assaulted after meeting men they had first encountered online.

“MySpace knows its Web site attracts predators,” said Jason Itkin, an attorney representing the families. “Because of that, MySpace needs to take safety precautions to prevent these predators from having the ability to seek out, lure and assault young children. They have failed to do that.”

But at the same time, Kurt Opsahl, a staff attorney for the Electronic Frontier Foundation, said that such rules could stifle the Internet.

Filed under: USA by lrenz