CHANCES are even the biggest Luddites among us have heard of the latest internet phenomenon: websites Facebook, MySpace, Flixster and Bebo.

Maybe you don't know quite what they are or how they work, but most of us will agree that it feels like these social networking websites are taking over the world, especially for young people.

It used to be only bands or famous people had their own website, but nowadays go to any college or university across the country and I'll bet my bottom dollar the vast majority of students have a Facebook or MySpace account.

For those who aren't au fait, I'll explain.

The basic premise is these sites allow people to "make friends" with each other.

You can search your old school, college, workplaces or geographical areas to find people you know to add as friends.

Although you don't even need to have met the person before to make friends with them.

If you like the sound of someone all you have to do is request their friendship and if they accept, you're officially "friends".

And once your friendship is sealed you can chat, view each other's photographs, arrange get-togethers, send private messages and do a whole host of other weird and wonderful things, including "Zombie biting" and buying gifts.

All seems innocent on the surface - but under the surface there is a darker, more sinister side to this new technology - and it's much worse than a bit of virtual Zombie biting.

Yesterday we heard from the mother of a 16-year-old sex grooming victim talk of her anguish that her daughter was being stalked by hundreds of men looking for sex via these websites.

The woman said her daughter's homepages of the sites were filled with pictures of sinister-looking men after she had accepted them as "friends".

The girl, who had been taken into care in a bid to protect her from sexual predators grooming her for sex, was out of control, said her mum.

She had 113 male friends on her Flixster account alone and had said on her profile that she loves "to chil and chang wid ma bitches and boiz".

"Chill is slang for having sex so I dread to think about what she's talking about," said her worried mother.

Sadly this isn't a one-off case.

Last year the Telegraph launched its Keep Them Safe Campaign which highlighted the growing number of men, predominantly Asian, targeting young girls for sex, luring them into a sordid world by giving them expensive gifts and providing alcohol and drugs for them.

Websites which offer an easy, anonymous route into the affections of these youngsters can be a useful tool for these sexual predators.

There's no easy way round this problem, after all the girls themselves are accepting these men as friends - but if parents are made aware that these seemingly innocent websites can be very dangerous if abused, then at least they can take take measures to make sure their children are not being exploited on the internet.