If your child is under 13 and is on IMVU, they lied and you need to teach them honesty. If your child is on IMVU and has access to adult content, they have your credit card and you need to take it away from them, call your credit card company to let them know that you don't authorize purchases from IMVU, call IMVU to inform them that the account was obtained fraudulently, and ground your child (or whatever punishment you deem suitable for lying and stealing.

I am extremely concerned about my 10 year old daughters well being.. She has her own computer and recently told myself and her father about the website. She explained how she did create an account but simply for fun and nothing else. However she brought to our attention that a man started to chat with her, so she replied to him that she wasn't interested in chatting, even after she identified herself as a 10 year old little girl he continued to pursue her and tell her he was 18 and didn't mind how young she was. He scared her and still continues to send her messages. She continues to ignore him but is afraid of him. I understand this is not a Childrens website, but at the same time there shouldn't be any man talking to a little girl after she identified herself as one. These websites should be monitored at all times by their creators. I know my daughter will not play on this website or any other website un-monitored ever again. Something so innocent in a childs mind and it gets soured by filth. So sad!! Watch your babies everyone.

MaskedHarvest,
I understand exactly what it is you're saying... A toddler could probably understand what you're saying, even with all the unnecessary shouting you're doing. Moving on from that...

There's not a single person here saying that parents shouldn't monitor their children. There's not a single person here saying that everything that happens to minors when using IMVU is IMVU's sole responsibility. That is of course from what I recall... I don't think anyone has made that kind of idiotic remark. If someone has, please feel free to scold them and not me.

I wholly agree that parents should babysit their children and not leave it to anyone else – especially a corporation. I firmly think that parents who neglect their children by not supervising them should be legally culpable when their children stumble into inappropriate content on the Internet, when they commit crimes, when they get hit by cars, and all kinds of other things that children end up doing before they grow up. However, the majority of so-called parents would rather let little Jenny do whatever the hell she wants on the Internet and then cry, scold, and yell at the websites for what their children find and what their children do. When that typically fails they then move on to attempting to censor the Internet in some weak-minded attempt to " save the children " instead of actually setting aside all of their excuses for not monitoring their children, growing up, and acting like a parent. So... welcome to barking up the wrong tree.

Again... I reiterate:

" The issues with IMVU have never been about whether or not they should step in and fill a parents role. "

Instead of sitting at your computer wasting time shouting at me, and accusing me of not reading your little half-attempt at a mature rant, I'd suggest you go back and dig through this thread ( and the other thread on this same site regarding this same subject. ) and read them both all the way through and see all of the valid points that are being made regarding IMVU's behavior by my " little " rants and those of others. When you've become better acquainted with the subject material -- come back and try it again with an informed opinion.

This isn't about " saving the children " it's about holding a company responsible for it's unethical behaviors.

I don't think that it is right, but as I have said on similar topics on various other forums.

It's going to happen one way or the other. Whether it be on IMVU, Facebook, Myspace, Texting, a call on the cell.

Without trying to sound like I'm grouping all children in the same group. Children will do things that they know they are not supposed to do.

On the same token, the various sites and forms of communication can only do so much. Take IMVU for an example with over 1 million registered accounts. Do you think with any kind of sanity, that they should have to pick up the slack, where parents fail?

Just think about this for example... A home that has both parents and lets just say 2 children, some parents have a very good idea of what their children are doing. Other families in that same scenario have only the slightest clue as to what their children are doing.

Which leads me back to what I have said countless times... It's about time parents do their job, keep an eye on what their children are doing, educate them in being smart and safe on the net, and stop expecting these sites to pick up the slack where the parent just doesn't care.

Now lets put this same scenario into the realm of something like IMVU. Without having an exact number of users from the ages of 13 to 17. Lets just say 20,000 users fit into that age range, with a staff base that actually monitor the site at 25 staff members. I might be over exaggerating on that to be honest for staff. Consider the ratio of this it would be 1 Staff member for every 800 Minors. If 2 parents can't keep an eye on two children, how is 1 person going to be able to keep a constant eye on 800 ??

I am a developer on IMVU and I have had an account for over a year. There are a lot of things on there that are inapropriate, but most of these items require an access pass which requires an age verification.These both cost money an ap or access pass cost $20 so if your children have access to your credit cards then is there is a more of a need to "worry" about them seeing certain poses or items in the catalog or being able to purchase them. You can't even see them if you don't have an ap.... And if you as parents don't monitor their access that's on you.. a child can still cyber in a private chat so in my opinion watch your children closer and peek over shoulders to see what they are actually typing... I know for a fact that one of the people who role play as my son on IMVU is a 13yr old boy and I have gotten on his case several times for cybering as if he were my own son... He knows his parents don't allow him on the site and he sneaks! Parents WAKE UP watch your kids and don't expect a site to do your job....

vaya lo unico que eh visto es 15 paginas de drama total contra una compañia que por mucho supera todos sus comentarios incoerentes , si no les gusta que sus hijos vean cosas que al fin y alcabo tendran que hacer algun dia entonces no los dejen usar el internet y punto pero para que lo sepan los chamacos aprenden mas cosas de las que uds pueden saber asique no se molesten

While Masked Harvest is correct about not expecting IMVU to do your parenting for you, it's not really all that simple. I've been in IMVU for four years now; i'm 63 years old and housebound with heart disease, so I have lots of time to spend online. I and quite a few others have done a lot of work against online pedophiles, stalkers, and very very real human traffickers, and I'm in a position to say that IMVU is no better or worse than most any other social website. You should get your blinders off, and either stop your child from being there, or, as Masked Harvest suggests, put on a monitoring program and actively watch what you kid is doing online. IMVU, like any other social website, IS potentially dangerous. We have worked through non-IMVU agencies, especially NCMAC (National Center for Missing and Abused Children), local and national law enforcement, and a number of groups outside the USA, to force IMVU to take action in many cases, especially to close down "teaser" or "bait" Groups. Typically these get the kids (ANY AGE) involved on IMVU, then switch them to Yahoo, AOL, MSN, etc. to go on webcam. We've also headed off more than one potential suicide....sadly, we also FAILED to head one off, and it really happened - double suicide too....43yo man and 17yo boy. We detected it too late, contacted the police in the man's town, and they found him dead in his home. He had waited until he knew the boy was dead, then killed himself. But don't fool yourself that if you get your kids off IMVU, they are SAFE. I'm telling you, we work many sites, and IMVU is no worse than others, and is actually better than most. Get a grip.