Orkut has become a "virtual paradise for criminals" in Brazil

BNamericas.com Via Thomson Dialog NewsEdge)Online community website Orkut, owned by US internet search company Google (Nasdaq: GOOG), has become a "virtual paradise for criminals" in Brazil, according to Thiago Tavares of local non-profit organization Safernet.

Orkut, which has some 70% of its global registered users in Brazil, has become the most popular communication medium for criminals on Brazil's internet, local newspaper Estado de S.Paulo quoted Tavares as saying.

Although Turkish programmer Orkut Buyukkokten created the Orkut site with the altruistic aim of connecting people, the site has lost its innocence as crimes such as pedophilia and drug dealing have become common, the newspaper reported.