Online games shut out US sex offenders

[Deleted]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-20810421

Online games shut out US sex offenders

The purge has seen more than 5,600 accounts used by sex offenders shut down
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Hundreds of accounts for online games used by registered sex offenders have been shut down in the US.

More than 2,100 gaming accounts were closed as part of Operation: Game Over run by New York's attorney general.

It was able to target the accounts because registered sex offenders are required to surrender details of their online aliases.

Blizzard, Microsoft, Sony, NCSoft and many other game firms are backing the purge, aimed at protecting children.

"The internet is the crime scene of the 21st Century, and we must ensure that online video game platforms do not become a digital playground for dangerous predators," said New York's attorney general Eric Schneiderman in a statement.

Mr Schneiderman said the action would make online gaming communities a safer place for children. Many parents did not know, he said, that online gaming platforms and services let players communicate anonymously. However, he added, offenders had used this capability in the past to contact and "groom" children they later went on to abuse.

New York's Electronic Securing and Targeting of Online Predators Act, known as the e-STOP law, requires convicted sex offenders to tell the state which email addresses, login names, screen identities and other online aliases they use. These are then passed on to game and web firms that have signed up to help the programme.

Gaming accounts on Xbox Live, PlayStation Network, World of Warcraft, Guild Wars, Gaia Online and many others have been deleted as a result of the law.

This action builds on the first stage of the e-STOP programme that saw more than 3,500 online accounts used by sex offenders shut down.

[Deleted]

My only concern is what passes as a 'Sex Offender'. I've heard of people being put on the sex offenders registry for drunkenly pissing in public and unintentionally exposing themselves to minors, or other things of a similar nature.

[semaphore]

I hope this only applies to actual sex offenders, and not somebody who made a stupid mistake and got disproportionally punished by overzealous prosecutors who lost sight of the law's purpose (e.g. those sexting victims who got prosecuted for distributing child pornography... of themselves).

[Deleted]

I hope this only applies to actual sex offenders, and not somebody who made a stupid mistake and got disproportionally punished by overzealous prosecutors who lost sight of the law's purpose (e.g. those sexting victims who got prosecuted for distributing child pornography... of themselves).

You can be fairly certain that this doesn't take any measure to avoid people such as those, it simply covers everyone who has received a criminal record in that area of crime.

[semaphore]

You can be fairly certain that this doesn't take any measure to avoid people such as those, it simply covers everyone who has received a criminal record in that area of crime.

Yeah, I was afraid of that. Always makes me sad to hear about those cases. Mars an otherwise decent initiative when they're working off a poorly assembled list.

[Flame6]

What a waste of money. I believe in the cause but the amount of cash they must of spent (you can tell because they even came up with a fancy name "operation") and they only deleted 2,000 accounts.

[Deleted]

Are they going to do a background check on everyone now?

[semaphore]

What a waste of money. I believe in the cause but the amount of cash they must of spent (you can tell because they even came up with a fancy name "operation")

What a completely objective and scientific measure of money spent.

---------- Post added 2012-12-21 at 02:23 PM ----------

Are they going to do a background check on everyone now?

Did you read the OP? What does background checks have to do with the story?

[anveena]

I really don't see how this is even effective. They're just going to make a whole new account under a fake name.

[Rukentuts]

New York's Electronic Securing and Targeting of Online Predators Act, known as the e-STOP law, requires convicted sex offenders to tell the state which email addresses, login names, screen identities and other online aliases they use. These are then passed on to game and web firms that have signed up to help the programme.

Yeah, because criminals never lie.

[Deleted]

What a completely objective and scientific measure of money spent.

---------- Post added 2012-12-21 at 02:23 PM ----------



Did you read the OP? What does background checks have to do with the story?

As usual that went right over your head, you just love to argue.

[Hyve]

This could end up hitting people who are not actually sex offenders. My concern though is also the security of this information. It would then possible for online societies to simply target accounts, and find out if the account has been banned for certain reasons.

If the reason pops up as a sex offender, then those people could become a victim of abuse for something they didn't actually do. That said, real sex offenders should be hit hard, really hard by society and these systems, but the systems are juvenile and are going to hurt the wrong type of people.

[Flyingmoney]

My only concern is what passes as a 'Sex Offender'. I've heard of people being put on the sex offenders registry for drunkenly pissing in public and unintentionally exposing themselves to minors, or other things of a similar nature.

aaaaand we nailed it, right off the bat!

[Raldazzar]

Now we wait for 'why is my account banned?' threads on forums.. and we know they are kiddy fiddlers!

[Reeve]

Are they going to do a background check on everyone now?

It's kind of freaking me out that your avatar has changed.

[Doylez]

If those sex offenders are so dangerous that they can't even be allowed in an ONLINE world, shouldn't they be in prison?

[celinamuna]

Terrible idea

[Rukentuts]

If those sex offenders are so dangerous that they can't even be allowed in an ONLINE world, shouldn't they be in prison?

You can't send someone to prison unless they've actually done something. If they served their time you have to release them.

[semaphore]

As usual that went right over your head, you just love to argue.

A totally convincing explanation of why they are "going to do a background check on everyone". As usual you just love to use thinly veiled insults in lieu of a valid argument.

[Rukentuts]

Terrible idea

It's a great idea actually; it's just shitily implemented, like many things the government does.