Boy Receives Porn on Xbox Live; Mom Goes Nuts
A predator sent pictures to an 11-year-old boy on Xbox LIVE.
Just because gamers are playing their favorite titles on a "closed" network, that doesn't mean they're immune to the powers of predators and porn. One Texas mother made this discovery after her 11-year-old son received pornography from an online gamer he met via Xbox LIVE.
"When they are playing against their friends, it's a controlled environment," explained mom Rosie Garcia in an interview with San Antonio's News Channel 9. "But when they join a party, it can be someone in Japan, Australia, anywhere in the world."
According to Garcia, her son made contact with a gamer he met in an unspecified game. Although the details regarding the transaction between the two were not discussed, apparently the new "friend" sent the boy pornographic pictures. There was no indication of what the pictures actually contained, however the News Channel 9 report mentioned the word "predator," leaving little to the imagination.
Upon receipt of the images, the mother immediately called the San Antonio police. The also called Xbox LIVE and provided the Gamertag information, and then filled out a complaint form on the Xbox LIVE website.
Pornography on Xbox LIVE isn't anything new. Back in 2008 one Michigan mother filed a complaint after her two children were exposed to nudity via the Xbox LIVE camera. A representative told the mother that Microsoft couldn't monitor content transmitted from camera to camera. Although the mother contacted the local authorities to report the "crime," she eventually canceled the Xbox LIVE subscription, fearing the "safety of her children."
Gamers and parents who want to keep Xbox LIVE "clean," a "NO PORN FOR XBOX LIVE" petition is online, written by Dan Arrey. The petition came online after Vivid Entertainment revealed its interest in bringing porn-related content to Xbox LIVE. It doesn't address situations like predators and naughty gamers, but it's a start.
So far the petition has a whopping 12 signatures.
- Best Buy Offering Free Skins to iPhone 4 Buyers
- Amazon Announces New, Improved Wi-Fi Kindle
- Simply the Best Earphone Packaging Ever
- Oil From Dinner Last Night is Fuel of Tomorrow
- Government Funds Artificial Photosynthesis Hub
- Ultra-Detailed Tattoos for Lego People
- Now Here's a Batpod You Can Actually Ride
- The Robot Elephant Made of Recycled Materials
- Google Suspends Android Wallpaper Apps
- Hacker Makes ATMs Puke Money, Shows How
- Internet Explorer 9 Beta Scheduled for September
- Shirt Turns iPad Into T-Shirt Accessory
- Apple Investigates iOS 4 Bogging Down iPhone 3G
- Apps to Avoid: Road SMS and Type 'n Walk
- The BlackBerry ''Blackpad'' to Take on Apple iPad
- Screaming Teenage Girls are Faster than Segway
- How to Check if Your Android App is Stealing Info
- Facebook Page for Snitching Traffic Violators
- Latest Security News
- 08/16 – Gift Card-Cloning Thief Scams Best Buy and Apple
- 08/12 – Software 'Removes' Pedestrians from Street View
- 08/12 – Touchscreen Smudges Could Reveal Passwords
- 08/10 – South Korean Police Raid the Google Offices
- 08/10 – Android's First SMS-Based Trojan Rears its Head
- All Security news
I would be upset too if one of my daughters engaged in such activity, but I would be upset with her. It takes two.
What do you expect to happen when you let a video game console that is hooked up to the net babysit your kids?
the problem is not the service, or the people. everywhere in the world 'bad' stuff happens, and nudity and porn just happens to be everywhere people go. letting children on the internet(xbox live or whatever, still the internet) is the same as exposing them to the world, in the sense that it's uniting the whole world, and therefore bad things will find you. it's the same as letting your child outside, deal with it the right way, by not having children on the internet by them selves. end of discussion.
OMG It has 15 now >.> Yes you can try to protect your children from these predators, but trying to control something like Pornography on something that is connected to the Internet is just plan unrealistic. I mean look at the iPad Steve Jobs said that he will keep Porn off of it, but People manged to get on there.
"So far the petition has a whopping 12 signatures."
Says it all.
Well in a gaming world... Who wouldn't expect other sorts of ,,visual games''? Since Xbox LIVE is a humongus gamer base.. Anything can happen.
So the mother is angry at Xbox Live and not at the stupidity of her own son - or her own lack of responsibility?
The kid was 11 years old. At that age, your parents should have told you something about the risks of the internet. And if that kid had received this explanation and still got into this mess, it's his own fault.
And besides, seeing porn at age 11 isn't the end of the world - assuming the mother in question takes a few minutes to talk about it.
If you can not control your child's activity, why would you try to control the others'?
I really wonder sometimes.... How can parents not understand by now that the internet isn't the friendliest of places. Something like this should have been expected by the parent, and if they think their child can't handle it, they should have enabled the child restrictions regarding communications with strangers.
The parent carries a large amount of blame for this. It's messed up that someone would send an 11 year old this stuff (assuming the guy even new how old he is...?), but inappropriate content being shown to minors by strangers on the internet isn't exactly a rare occurrence - and it's not like the media hasn't been reporting it.
Wonder if they were pictures of the mom...
My thoughts:
A: Don't make the xbox parent your child. Should have gotten him a football instead if you feel that way.
B: People are born nude. Porn is ok, for everyone. 11-y/o looking at some tits isn't going to turn him into a serial killer pedophile rapist.
C: What about some dude sharing his nice collection makes him a predator? Did he ask the kid to meet him somewhere and most importantly, *procede to actually touch him*? I doubt it.
D: I hate everyone.
So the mother is angry at Xbox Live and not at the stupidity of her own son - or her own lack of responsibility?
Why take responsibility when you can blame someone else and look like the victim yourself?
TH Staff : In related porn news, Teagan Presley aka "A pornstar" is currently "experimenting" with iPhone 4's Face Time software for "business" purposes.
I'm sure Jane is already aware of this news but seeing as she's on vacation I thought I'd post this free day-old titbit of information.
up to 17 now
It would be really ironic if the mom let her kid play God of War 2, Mortal Kombat: Deception, and Dead Rising. If so, she wins the Parent of the Year Award.
the kid could be playing outside, doing exercise, studying for his future. This woman is upset because someone else isn't taking care of her kid. Unplug the thing lady, get real case closed.
At age of 11, we all been there before. The body starts changing. If she knows better, she should start sexual education at that age. In the early 1900, people get married and have children at the age of 15 or 16. Kids afraid to ask question, parents should proactive about this. Her kid probably laugh about it also.
too many "porn news" in tomsguide
You can't stop porn on Xbox live any more than you can with Facebook or any other social networking medium. Pay attention to what your kids are doing and don't blame the service for bad/ignorant parenting.
It would be really ironic if the mom let her kid play God of War 2, Mortal Kombat: Deception, and Dead Rising. If so, she wins the Parent of the Year Award.
I see kids playing graphic "MATURE" games online ALL the time. In fact.. the average maturity age of online FPS shooters seems to be about 10. Not saying they are all 10 year olds... they just act that way.
Won't someone please think of the children!!!!
Dont blame the internet because u dont have any control over yur crappy kid !!!!!
It's messed up that someone would send an 11 year old this stuff (assuming the guy even new how old he is...?)
When your playing Halo everyone is a 30+ year old rapist, and everyone acts and sounds 8 years old. So yeah, parents expect crap.
This is the mother's fault for letting her child on Xbox Live. It's an online service, and no one could monitor everything, such as video chat. If I had a child, I wouldn't let them near the service, it's just common sense.
Obviously the predator should be arrested and charged, but parents everywhere should know better than to subject their kids to un-moderated cyberspace.
< acknowledges he'll burn in h*ll for this...>
YEAH!!! YOU SHOW HIM HOW IT's DONE, GIRL!!!
not enough "porn news" in tomsguide
Fixed....;P
Well, one thing is for sure, my kids wont be getting access to any site except SesameStreet, no exceptions and I'll be supervising.
How is this news? its just more sensational BS to get media attention.
Anybody wanna bet this kid was playing Call of Duty or Halo at the time?
Man, when I Was 11 I had a helluva time trying to find porn online. This kid just gets it sent to him?
Bah.. kids these days
Some women need jobs.