The popular social networking Web site Facebook will create and enforce new security standards on its site to settle an investigation by Attorney General Cuomo’s office that found “significant defects” in its safety controls.

The site will hire an independent safety officer, distribute a new protection disclosure to parents, and begin responding to complaints within 24 hours, Mr. Cuomo and the chief privacy officer for Facebook, Chris Kelly said today.

Mr. Cuomo said that his investigators, who posed as underage users of the Web site, were repeatedly solicited by adult sexual predators and found easy access to pornographic images and videos. The company was slow to respond to his initial charges, Mr. Cuomo said.

“Our agreement with Facebook offers a new model of cooperative action that balances the freedom offered by the Internet with the necessary precautions for children traveling on the information superhighway,” Mr. Cuomo said.

The independent safety monitor will report on the Web site’s compliance for two years, Mr. Cuomo said. Facebook also disclosed new safety procedures on the Web site, created an email address for complaints, and posted several links for users to file complaints more easily.