Adoption activities on the Internet: a call for regulation

There is a growing practice of adoption services on the Internet with varying degrees of regulation, depending on whether it is domestic infant adoption, public foster care adoption, or international adoption. Regulation is particularly lacking in domestic infant adoptions, with Web sites connecting prospective birth and adoptive parents, sometimes through an adoption brokerage service. International adoptions can also be plagued by unethical practices as the Internet has become available in both developed and developing countries. These activities, although offering the benefits of privacy and convenience, also pose serious problems of potential fraud, exploitation, and, most important, lack of professional consideration of the child's best interest. In this article, the authors review the landscape of current Internet-based adoption activities, examine the benefits and risks of Internet-based adoption activities, and call for social work self-regulation and leadership.