Facebook set to lift ban on under-13s joining social network site

Facebook looks set to relax a ban on children using its site in a move that could see millions more sign up.
A senior employee of the company said the decision to lift the restriction could come about after admitting a large number of under 13-year-olds join up anyway.
The announcement follows Facebook's floatation on the stock market for a price of $38 a share - a valuation that puts the company's worth at over $100billion.

If Facebook's plan goes ahead, children could soon be signing up in droves to use the social networking site

If the decision to lift the ban is implemented, a flood of new users are likely to sign up to the site.

The number of people with profiles - currently estimated at 900million active users - would probably hit the iconic one billion mark, meaning that more than one in seven people in the world would be an
active user of the site.
Simon Milner, head of policy in Britain for Facebook, said the decision to allow children to create profiles was still at a very early stage.

Facebook millionaires: Those with stakes in the social networking site, including founder Mark Zuckerberg, left, and co-founder Eduardo Saverin, right, have profited hugely from the floatation on the stock market

Speaking to the Sunday Times, he said: 'There is reputable evidence there are kids under 13 who are lying about their age to get on to Facebook.
'Some seem to be doing it with their parents' permission and help.
'We have a strict under-13 rule because of legal issues in America and we apply the same rule all over the world.
'But a lot of parents are happy their kids are on it.'

Pakistan Twitter ban

Social networking site Twitter has been blocked in Pakistan after refusing to delete 'anti-Islamic' posts.
The country's telecommunications authority requested that tweets, encouraging users to depict the Prophet Muhammed were removed from the site but Twitter refused to comply.
Facebook was subject to a ban in Pakistan in 2010 after posts appeared on the site promoting a similar competition.

The policy of not allowing underage users to make profiles has been seen by some as a way of protecting youngsters from online dangers.
Past surveys have suggested that one in three British children has been the victim of abuse on the internet.
The poll, commissioned by charity Beatbullying in 2009, also revealed that girls are up to four times more likely to face online bullying than boys.
Some school bullies have even set up Facebook groups allowing dozens of people to band together to abuse classmates.
Facebook has responded to criticism in the past by adding a number of safety features to the site to attempt to combat online bullying.