Aims To Protect Kids From Predators
Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman announced that more than 3,500 accounts of New York registered sex offenders have been purged from online video game platforms as part of “Operation: Game Over,” a groundbreaking initiative with participation from Microsoft, Apple, Blizzard Entertainment, Electronic Arts, Disney Interactive Media Group, Warner Bros. and Sony.
The Attorney General’s database sweep is a first-of-its-kind effort to protect children from predators on video game networks in New York State.
“We must ensure online video game systems do not become a digital playground for dangerous predators.
That means doing everything possible to block sex offenders from using gaming networks as a vehicle to prey on underage victims,” said Schneiderman. “I applaud all the companies participating in this firstof its-kind initiative for taking online safety seriously and purging their networks of sex offenders. Together we are making the online community safer for our children, not allowing it to become a 21st century crime scene.”
Under New York State law, convicted sex offenders must register all of their e-mail addresses, screen names, and other Internet identifiers with the state, and that information is then made available to certain websites so they can purge potential predators from their online networks.
After the Office of Attorney General approached gaming companies to remove registered sex offenders on their networks, the companies agreed to purge the accounts. Operation: Game Over is the first time the law has been applied to online video game systems.
According to the Pew Research Center, 97 percent of teens (ages 12- 17) play computer, web, portable or console games and 27 percent of them play games online with people they don’t know.
Almost all video game consoles with online capabilities allow users to access the Internet and send messages to other players under anonymous screen names. Many popular games are specifically designed so that players must interact and play with each other. Games can have thousands of people-both children and adults-playing online at one time.
Schneiderman noted that parents often do not realize that gaming consoles have these capabilities, or that parental controls exist for these systems.
Password-protected “family settings” on many online gaming platforms allow parents to restrict Internet access, track content and monitor contacts.
As a result of Operation: Game Over, 3,580 accounts of New York state sex offenders have been purged -or had their communication privileges suspended-from the gaming platforms owned by Microsoft, Apple, Blizzard Entertainment, Electronic Arts, Warner Bros. and Disney Interactive Media Group.
Operation: Game Over coincides with recent incidents of sexual predators using voice and text chat functions in online gaming services to lure underage victims across the country.
Earlier this month, Richard Kretovic, a 19-year-old man from Monroe County, pled guilty to sexual abuse charges after meeting a 10- year-old boy on the popular online video game system Xbox Live. The man gained the boy’s trust over a period of three months, and then invited the boy over to his house where the abuse occurred, according to police.
Crime victims’ advocates and online gaming companies also applauded the Attorney General’s initiative.
John Walsh, co-founder of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children and host of America’s Most Wanted, said, “We know that sex offenders target and lure children and how they look at the online community as their private, perverted hunting ground. I commend New York State Attorney General Schneiderman’s efforts to make gaming platforms safer for kids. This initiative is a strong model for other states, and it’s also a great partnership with private sector companies who are demonstrating their commitment to children’s safety.”
According to the Division of Criminal Justice Services (DCJS), New York State has more than 33,000 registered sex offenders: 12,800 are level 1 registered offenders (lowest risk of repeat offense); 11,948 are level 2 registered offenders (moderate risk of repeat offense); 8331 are level 3 registered sex offenders (high risk of repeat offense and a threat to public safety exists).
There are a total of approximately 745,000 registered sex offenders in the United States.
Schneiderman provided the following tips for parents to protect children from sexual predators from online video game networks:
– choose games appropriate for your child’s age and maturity level;
– use your game console’s parental controls (control which games can be played; for how long; and whether they can play online);
– keep computer or game console in a public area of the home; and
– talk to your kids about how to protect identifying information, and to avoid and report conversations that make them uncomfortable.
Coordination between the Attorney General’s office, DCJS and the gaming companies is being handled by the A.G.’s Internet Bureau, under the supervision of Senior Advisor & Counselor to the Attorney General Gregory M. Krakower, Assistant Attorney General Clark Russell, and Executive Deputy Attorney General for Economic Justice Karla G. Sanchez.
