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Twitter Video-Sharing App Vine Faces Porn Problem

SAN FRANCISCO (KCBS) – San Francisco-based Twitter is taking steps to rein in a growing problem with porn on its new video-sharing app, Vine.

The app for the iPhone and iPod Touch allows users to create and share short six-second looping videos.

But after its release in January, the app quickly became a popular venue for pornography. Now, Twitter is requiring that users confirm they are at least 17 years old before downloading the app.

Twitter-Owned Video –Sharing App Vine Faces Porn Problem

KCBS Technology Analyst Larry Magid said it's not surprising that the app has been hit with pornographic material.

"The Vine app has a wide range of uses and most of them have nothing to do with pornography," he said. "But obviously, when you enable people to take videos and distribute them on the Internet, some people are going to use it for that purpose. Unfortunately, that seems to have colored people's impression of what this app is being used for."

The latest version (1.0.5) asks users to tap OK to confirm that they are 17 or over before downloading the app. Previous versions of the app described it as suitable for users 12 and older.

According to CNET, even with the update, children under the age of 17 lacking adult supervision will be able to subvert this new obstacle.

(Copyright 2013 by CBS San Francisco. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)

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