Cuomo: Tagged.com Ignores Child Porn

MYFOXNY.COM - Attorney General Andrew Cuomo's office is taking aim at a social networking website over sexually explicit photographs of children.

Cuomo said that Tagged.com ignored its own policies and procedures and ignored users' complaints about apparent child pornography. In a letter to the company , he requested Tagged.com to take action within five days or face a lawsuit.

"My message to Tagged.com is: Clean up your act or we will see you in court immediately," Cuomo said.

The site, which caters to teenagers, says it protects children by allowing uses to flag offensive material, which is then supposed to be removed.

But the attorney general's office said it created undercover user accounts to test Tagged.com's responsiveness and found it to be lacking.

"Despite the safety claims listed on its very own Web site, Tagged.com repeatedly looks the other way when sexually explicit material is sent to its underage users," Cuomo said. "Child safety online is something than can never be ignored. This type of activity on the Internet poses a threat to children everywhere and parents must be aware of the dangerous security lapses at Tagged.com."

A lawyer for Tagged Inc., Louis Willacy, issued a statement saying the company was cooperating with investigators, the AP reported.

"We strive constantly to improve our program to keep illegal content out and prevent unlawful contact between adults and minors on our site," Willacy said.

The attorney general's office said these are examples of graphic content that stayed online despite complaints made through the undercover user accounts:

• A user profile with a slideshow of children, some of whom appear to be younger than five years of age, in sexually explicit poses, exposing their genitals, and engaged in sex acts with other children. Tagged was informed of this content on April 17, 2010.
• A user profile with photos of an adult performing oral sex on a girl who appears to be younger than 10 years old. Tagged was informed of this content on May 27, 2010.
• An extremely graphic image of a girl who appears to be younger than 10 years old involving bestiality. Tagged was also informed of this content on May 27, 2010.