SAN FRANCISCO — The fake ID has gone digital, and spread to elementary school.

Across the nation, millions of young people are lying about their ages so they can create accounts on popular sites like Facebook and Myspace. These sites require users to be 13 or older, to avoid federal regulations that apply to sites with younger members. But to children, that rule is a minor obstacle that stands between them and what everybody else is doing.

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In 2006, 31 percent of 12-year-olds in the United States were using social networks, according to the Pew Research Center’s Internet and American Life Project. That figure grew to 38 percent by mid-2009, when the survey was last conducted.

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