Millions of Internet users have joined Orkut, a Web site created by Google that allows its members to join a list of online communities by invitation only. Most of the groups share a benign common interest like jazz music or travel. A small minority of groups, however, have been formed around hatred for Jews, blacks, or gays. This situation is causing a problem for Google, since online specialists say that the dialogues taking place are strictly forbidden in the user's agreement for the site and may even be illegal in some countries.

Google, which has adopted "don't be evil" as its motto, is facing new risks and problems as it ventures into new Internet businesses like Orkut. Generally, Internet laws and customs exempt service providers from responsibility for the behavior of their users. However, with the social networking sites, the responsibility is more ambiguous. Other Internet social networking sites like Friendster have had similar problems with hate groups, but the situation is more pronounced at Orkut where communities are formed based on stated shared interests. A competitor site called Tribe Networks employs a full-time staffer who looks for hate speak and handles complaints as they come up.

Orkut debuted a year ago. Nearly two-thirds of its registered users are from Brazil, a country whose people are quick to adopt emerging technologies. In Brazil, racism is against the law and carries a penalty of up to two to five years in prison. Jorge Santos, a Brazilian prosecutor who has launched an investigation into the site's practices after discovering some of the hate communities on Orkut, says that it is unlikely that Google could be held criminally responsible in a Brazilian court, however, they could be sued for damages for a lack of precautionary measures against racist crimes on their site.