TIPS FOR PARENTS

To find out if a child (or anyone else) has an account on a social networking site, it's helpful and sometimes mandatory to sign up yourself. It's a fairly simple process, and free. You don't have to post much personal information, just your name and, in some cases, where you work or went to school. You can delete the page later.
There are dozens of sites, but the most popular include MySpace.com, Facebook.com, Xanga.com and YouTube.com. Some are more open than others. MySpace makes it easier to find profiles, whereas on Facebook, browsing brings up only the profiles in your own school or business "networks." Of course, nothing would stop you from listing your high school as the same as your child's, but keep in mind that your child can see you there too.
To look for someone, locate the "search" field, usually near the top of the page. Generally, you can just type in a person's name, or even just the last name, then click on "go" or press Enter.
If you're looking for someone with a common name, it can mean looking through several screens to find the person you want. There are ways to narrow your search using hometowns, schools or other information. It's fairly simple to do but might take some experimenting.
If a minor child has an account you want to access or shut down, e-mail the site's customer service, usually by clicking on "help" or "contact us."
If all else fails, ask anyone between ages 12 and 25 for help.
Source: Dan Gibbard