From the “You Know It’ll Happen in the Future” department:
(AP) Popular Twitter service may have cost a young woman her life
Authorities are now reporting that Allie Sutherland was potentially lured to her death through messages posted on Twitter, the popular online messaging service.
Allie received a “tweet,” or message, from someone known only as “goslo11” shortly before she left her apartment. Two days later, her body was found in a ravine several miles away. Police have not released details of how the 22-year-old was killed.
Sutherland was a history major at Oberlin College. Friends stated that she had been spending more and more time “tweeting” with strangers recently.
(Reuters) “Twexting” teens on the rise
With states such as Vermont still prosecuting “sexting” – sending nude pictures via text message – under strict child pornography laws, more teens are now using the Twitter online service to broadcast their nude photos.
Twitter allows users to sign up with fake email addresses and names, and it includes a service to make photos available freely online. The combination is proving irresistible to teens seeking a way to share shocking photos anonymously.
Nearly 10 percent of teens admit to “twexting,” according to a survey by the Pew Internet & American Life Project.
:sigh: Undoubtedly true. Now I want to just take bets on when it’ll happen.
I remember a news story about 6-8 months ago, about a couple who got divorced in real life when the husband’s Second Life avatar started having a [virtual] affair. I bet something like that could happen via Twitter.
Also, didn’t Jennifer Anniston break up with John Mayer because he used Twitter too much? The ultimate irony would perhaps be if you married someone you met over a social networking site, only to split later because of addiction to social networking sites.
Next up: Exclusive! Somali Pirates plan raids via Twitter!
And at 11: Somali Pirates sue RIAA over trademark infringement.
Parents: Did you know about this DANGEROUS AND SEXY new fad among teenagers? Are teenagers too sexy these days? Look at some sexy teenagers and judge for yourself!
Okay, you guys have come up with even scarier possibilities.