Gamers Beware

When Kate’s 13-year-old son* started playing Minecraft and Fortnite, she didn’t worry.

The video games were hardly Grand Theft Auto—banned in their home because it was too violent—and he played in a room where she could keep an eye on him.

But about six weeks later, Kate saw something appalling pop up on the screen: a video of a sexual act involving a young boy. Horrified, she scrolled through her son’s account on Discord, a platform where gamers can chat while playing. The conversations were filled with graphic language and imagery of sexual acts posted by others, she says.

Kate started asking her son about some of the user names of his fellow gamers. “And he’s saying, ‘That’s so-and-so who goes to this school.’ And they all think it’s a friend of somebody,” she says, “but then they realize it’s not a friend of anybody.”

When Kate’s 13-year-old son* started playing Minecraft and Fortnite, she didn’t worry.

The video games were hardly Grand Theft Auto, which wasn’t allowed in their home because it was too violent. He also played in a room where she could keep an eye on him.

But about six weeks later, Kate was shocked by a video that popped up on the screen. It showed a sexual act involving a young boy. It was horrifying for her. She decided to look through her son’s account on Discord, a platform where gamers can chat while playing. The conversations were filled with graphic language and imagery of sexual acts posted by others, she says.

Kate started asking her son about some of the user names of his fellow gamers. “And he’s saying, ‘That’s so-and-so who goes to this school.’ And they all think it’s a friend of somebody,” she says, “but then they realize it’s not a friend of anybody.”

Stories like this are becoming increasingly common, as sexual predators and other bad actors have found an easy access point into the lives of young people: They are meeting them online through multiplayer video games and chat apps, making virtual connections to try to convince minors to share sexual photos or videos.

In many instances, the abusive relationships start in the games themselves. In other cases, adults posing as teenagers move conversations from gaming sites and chat rooms to platforms like Facebook Messenger, Kik, and Skype, where they can communicate more privately.

Reports of abuse are emerging with unprecedented frequency around the country. Six years ago, around 50 reports of the crimes, commonly known as “sextortion,” were referred to the federally designated clearinghouse that tracks online child sexual abuse. Last year, the center received more than 1,500. And the authorities believe that the vast majority of sextortion cases are never reported.

“These virtual spaces are essentially hunting grounds,” says Mary Anne Franks, a professor at the University of Miami School of Law and president of the Cyber Civil Rights Initiative, a nonprofit dedicated to combating online abuse.

Stories like this are becoming increasingly common. That’s because sexual predators and other bad actors have found an easy access point into the lives of young people. They are meeting them online through multiplayer video games and chat apps. They use these virtual connections to try to trick minors to share sexual photos or videos.

In many instances, the abusive relationships start in the games themselves. In other cases, adults posing as teenagers move conversations from gaming sites and chat rooms to platforms like Facebook Messenger, Kik, and Skype. On these platforms, they can communicate more privately.

Reports of abuse are popping up in larger numbers and more often around the country. These crimes are commonly known as “sextortion.” Six years ago, around 50 reports of these types of crimes were referred to the federally designated clearinghouse that tracks online child sexual abuse. Last year, the center received more than 1,500 reports. And the authorities believe that the vast majority of sextortion cases are never reported.

“These virtual spaces are essentially hunting grounds,” says Mary Anne Franks, a professor at the University of Miami School of Law and president of the Cyber Civil Rights Initiative, a nonprofit dedicated to combating online abuse.

There are tools to detect previously identified abuse content, but scanning for new images—like those extorted in real time from young gamers—is more difficult. While a handful of products have detection systems in place, there is little incentive under the law to tackle the problem, as companies are largely not held responsible for illegal content posted on their websites.

“Our society says we’re going to protect kids in the physical world,” says Steven J. Grocki, who leads the child exploitation and obscenity section at the Justice Department, “but we’ve yet to see that in the same way on the digital side.”

It makes sense that the gaming world is where many predators would go: It’s where the children are. Almost every teenage boy in America—97 percent—plays video games, while about 83 percent of girls do, according to the Pew Research Center.

There are many ways for gamers to meet online. They can use built-in chat features on consoles like Xbox and services like Steam, or connect on sites like Discord and Twitch. The games have become extremely social, and developing relationships with strangers on them is very common.

“Tech has made it easier for predators to get our kids faster and more efficiently,” says Ben Halpert, who runs Savvy Cyber Kids, a nonprofit focused on online safety. He adds that it makes children vulnerable by “normalizing communication with strangers.”

There are tools to detect previously identified abuse content. But scanning for new images—like those extorted in real time from young gamers—is more difficult. A handful of products have detection systems in place. Still, there is little incentive under the law to tackle the problem. That’s because companies are largely not held responsible for illegal content posted on their websites.

“Our society says we’re going to protect kids in the physical world,” says Steven J. Grocki, who leads the child exploitation and obscenity section at the Justice Department, “but we’ve yet to see that in the same way on the digital side.”

It makes sense that the gaming world is where many predators would go: It’s where the children are. Almost every teenage boy in America—97 percent—plays video games, and about 83 percent of girls do, according to the Pew Research Center.

There are many ways for gamers to meet online. They can use built-in chat features on consoles like Xbox and services like Steam. They can also connect on sites like Discord and Twitch. Video games have become extremely social. That’s why developing relationships with strangers on them is very common.

“Tech has made it easier for predators to get our kids faster and more efficiently,” says Ben Halpert, who runs Savvy Cyber Kids, a nonprofit focused on online safety. He adds that it makes children vulnerable by “normalizing communication with strangers.”

The criminals often pose as children, confiding in their victims with false stories of hardship or self-loathing to build up trust. Their goal, typically, is to dupe young people into sharing sexually explicit photos and videos of themselves—which they use as blackmail for more imagery, much of it increasingly graphic or violent.

“The first threat is, ‘If you don’t do it, I’m going to post on social media, and by the way, I’ve got a list of your family members and I’m going to send it all to them,’” says Matt Wright, a special agent with the Department of Homeland Security. “If they don’t send another picture, they’ll say: ‘Here’s your address—I know where you live. I’m going to come kill your family.’”

The criminals often pose as children. They tell their victims false stories of hardship or self-loathing to build up trust. Typically, their goal is to dupe young people into sharing sexually explicit photos and videos of themselves. Then they use them as blackmail for more imagery. And much of it gets increasingly graphic or violent.

“The first threat is, ‘If you don’t do it, I’m going to post on social media, and by the way, I’ve got a list of your family members and I’m going to send it all to them,’” says Matt Wright, a special agent with the Department of Homeland Security. “If they don’t send another picture, they’ll say: ‘Here’s your address—I know where you live. I’m going to come kill your family.’”

Department of Justice

A public service announcement from the F.B.I.

The trauma can be overwhelming for the young victims. An F.B.I. study reviewing a sample of sextortion cases found that more than a quarter of them led to suicide or attempted suicide. In 2016, a Justice Department report identified sextortion as “by far the most significantly growing threat to children.”

There are a few seemingly simple protections against online predators, but logistics, gaming culture, and companies’ concerns about losing customers present obstacles.

Companies could require identification and parental approvals to ensure games are played by people of the same age. But even as some platforms have experimented with programs like Real ID, a verification effort, gamers have resisted giving up anonymity.

“There’s been community-layer rejection of those systems because people like to be able to be anybody,” says Todd Harris, who co-founded Hi-Rez Studios, a game development company.

While Facebook has algorithms that can detect some red-flag behaviors in written messages, many gamers use audio and video chat. And eliminating audio and video interactions would be a death sentence for a gaming company fighting for customers, who often communicate with teammates. “You can’t seriously compete without talking,” Harris says. “The team with the best communication will win.”

Separately, some gaming companies deploy automated systems they say can detect some behaviors that are often warning signs, including attempts to move a chat off platform. Microsoft, which owns Xbox and the popular game Minecraft, says it plans to release software this year that could recognize behaviors that are often associated with sextortion. The company says it would offer the software to other tech businesses free of charge.

Sony, the maker of PlayStation, says it takes sextortion seriously, pointing to its tutorials on parental controls and tools that let users report abusive behavior. And indeed, there has been some success in catching perpetrators.

But the solution many game developers and online safety experts return to is that parents need to know what their children are playing, and that young people need to know what tools are available to them. Sometimes that means blocking users and shutting off chat functions, and sometimes it means monitoring the games as they are being played (see “How to Protect Yourself,” below).

The trauma can be overwhelming for the young victims. An F.B.I. study reviewing a sample of sextortion cases found that more than a quarter of them led to suicide or attempted suicide. In 2016, a Justice Department report identified sextortion as “by far the most significantly growing threat to children.”

There are a few seemingly simple protections against online predators. But logistics, gaming culture, and companies’ concerns about losing customers present obstacles.

Companies could require identification and parental approvals to ensure games are played by people of the same age. But some platforms already have experimented with programs like Real ID, a verification effort. And, even then, gamers have resisted giving up anonymity.

“There’s been community-layer rejection of those systems because people like to be able to be anybody,” says Todd Harris, who co-founded Hi-Rez Studios, a game development company.

Facebook has algorithms that can detect some red-flag behaviors in written messages. Unfortunately, many gamers use audio and video chat. And eliminating audio and video interactions would be a death sentence for a gaming company fighting for customers. Gamers have to communicate with teammates. “You can’t seriously compete without talking,” Harris says. “The team with the best communication will win.”

Separately, some gaming companies put automated systems in place that they say can detect some behaviors that are often warning signs. That includes attempts to move a chat off platform. Microsoft, which owns Xbox and the popular game Minecraft, says it plans to release software this year that could recognize behaviors that are often associated with sextortion. The company says it would offer the software to other tech businesses free of charge.

Sony, the maker of PlayStation, says it takes sextortion seriously. The company offers tutorials on parental controls and tools that let users report abusive behavior. And indeed, there has been some success in catching perpetrators.

But the solution many game developers and online safety experts return to is parental supervision. They say that parents need to know what their children are playing. They also say that young people need to know what tools are available to them. Sometimes that means blocking users and shutting off chat functions. It also means monitoring the games as they are being played. (see “How to Protect Yourself,” below).

If teens do find themselves in an exploitative situation, experts say, they shouldn’t be too ashamed to seek help. This fall, the F.B.I. rolled out an awareness campaign in middle and high schools to encourage young victims to come forward. “Even if you accepted money or a game credit or something else,” the F.B.I. explains, “you are not the one who is in trouble.”

Consider the story of a girl attending high school in Tennessee. She thought she’d made a new female friend on Kik Messenger. They both loved volleyball, and they even resembled each other physically, their profile photos showed. They chatted for six months. But after the Tennessee teen shared a partially nude photo of herself, the “friend” demanded she send increasingly graphic videos and threatened to share the explicit photo with her classmates if she didn’t.

Experts say that teens shouldn’t be too ashamed to seek help if they find themselves in an exploitative situation. This fall, the F.B.I. rolled out an awareness campaign in middle and high schools to encourage young victims to come forward. “Even if you accepted money or a game credit or something else,” the F.B.I. explains, “you are not the one who is in trouble.”

Consider the story of a girl attending high school in Tennessee. She thought she’d made a new female friend on Kik Messenger. They both loved volleyball. They even resembled each other physically, based on their profile photos. The two of them chatted for six months. The Tennessee teen was persuaded to share a partially nude photo of herself. Afterward, things changed. The “friend” then demanded she send increasingly graphic videos. And a threat was made: If she didn’t send the videos, the explicit photo of her would be shared with her classmates.

The girl told her mother, who called the police. The offender was a Louisiana man, who was 24 years old at the time of the chat in 2014. The police said the man, now in prison, had forced more than 50 girls to send him nude and sexually explicit photos.

The experience has haunted the Tennessee teen ever since. But it’s also made her realize how important it is for young people to speak up if they’re ever in that type of situation.

“I thought for a long time that there was something wrong with me or that I was a bad person,” she says. “Now that I’ve gotten to college, I’ll talk to my friends about it, and there have been so many girls who have said, ‘That exact same thing happened to me.’”

The girl told her mother, who called the police. The offender was a Louisiana man, who was 24 years old at the time of the chat in 2014. The police said the man had forced more than 50 girls to send him nude and sexually explicit photos. He’s now in prison.

The experience has haunted the Tennessee teen ever since. But it’s also made her realize how important it is for young people to speak up if they’re ever in that type of situation.

“I thought for a long time that there was something wrong with me or that I was a bad person,” she says. “Now that I’ve gotten to college, I’ll talk to my friends about it, and there have been so many girls who have said, ‘That exact same thing happened to me.’”