Irish network — 800,000 users of Bebo website

THERE are currently up to 800,000 Irish people using social networking site Bebo — and it is second only to Google as the most widely used website in Ireland.

That is according to the founders of Bebo, Michael and Xochi Birch.

It now has almost 28 million users concentrated almost exclusively in Ireland, the United Kingdom, the United States, New Zealand and Australia.

Today the couple and the company’s chief safety officer, Dr Rachel O’Connell, are in Dublin to meet with this country’s Internet Advisory Board, following an invitation from the chairwoman of the board, Audrey Conlon.

Among their aims will be to show that, while much has been written about the potential of social networking sites to promote bullying and even paedophilia, there are huge gains for society from the growth of the medium.

The IAB is a multi-stakeholder group which includes the Department of Justice, law enforcement agencies, child welfare groups, educationalists, policy makers and the internet industry.

“We will be having a discussion around social networking and about mobile technologies and looking at specific areas, particularly policy making,” said Dr O’Connell.

“The chairwoman of the (British) Home Office Internet Taskforce Group on Social Networking, Annie Mullins of Vodafone is also coming over.

“She and I will be speaking about the global best practice standards being devised in relation to social networking. That means we are utilising the last 10 years of experience in working to make the internet safer, to make social networking safer.”

“It is giving us the opportunity to meet key law enforcement agencies to discuss the way we are approaching, facilitating and reporting abuse at Bebo.”

In the UK, Bebo have liaised with Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre (CEOPS) to create a direct reporting system to the law enforcement agencies and Rachel O’Connell hopes they will be able to put as strong features in place here.

“We want to discuss what systems are here rather than replicating the system in the UK,” said Dr O’Connell.

The risk of paedophiles using the system and the chance for grooming and bullying have forced the those in the pro-internet camp to focus on intensifying security measures, according to the Birches and Dr O’Connell.

One of their aims is to see social networking becoming part of the school curriculum. They are working on a teaching pack to be integrated at school level.

“We have evidence that the quality of children’s work improves if they have the opportunity to work in an online collaborative environment.

“Bebo is now a seamless part of many people’s lives and an extension of their real world lives,” said Ms O’Connell.

“There is an extraordinary sense of community with people looking out for each other.”