Minors Able To Buy Violent Video Games Online

By Mike Sachoff - Tue, 06/24/2008 - 11:10

Age verification overlooked

Children are able to purchase violent video games illegally through online auction sites according to the UK based Trading Standards Institute.

Nearly 90 percent of online retailers tested offered violent video games to children who were under 18. Games that were purchased included Manhunt, Grand Theft Auto, Godfather and Hitman, all of which are rated 18 and over because of violent content.

Welsh Heads of Trading Standards (WHOTS) conducted the investigation. Six local authorities used volunteers between the ages of 12 and 16, to purchase 18 -rated video games online.

Out of 44 tested purchases attempted, 38 sites went through with the transactions.

'This survey shows how easily children can gain access to age-restricted, violent video games," said Lee Jones, acting head of Trading Standards. 'Traders who use auction sites and accept postal orders as payment have no method of determining whether the person they are selling to is aged 18 or over."

Brandon Cook, the institute's lead officer for age-restricted sales, said that a number of companies run age checks on customers for online retailers, which are "very quick and relatively cheap."

Companies selling products online have "a responsibility to make sure they have methods in place to avoid breaking the law by making under-age sales," said Cook.

"If traders cannot be sure the person they are selling to is over 18, then they should not be selling."

Those found selling violent games to minors can face a fine or up to six months in jail.

News Tags: Technology, TSI, Video Games, UK

About the author:
Mike is a staff writer for WebProNews.

2 Comments

By Guest (WPN reader) - Wed, 07/30/2008 - 01:10

Quit pointing your grubby

Quit pointing your grubby little fingers parent and do some effin parenting. There you go problem solved. Save you money g-ment and fund Bungie :) HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!

By HarveyJ (WPN reader) - Thu, 06/26/2008 - 21:18

How about blaimg parents for once?

Sorry, but this just seems like a bit of scare mongering to me. Precisely how is it that these children are paying for things online in the first place? They would require a credit card, or payment facility (that generally requires a credit card to sign up to in the first place). The only 12 to 16 year olds I know of that have access to credit cards are the ones that ask their for parents'... So once again, this is a matter of parents providing the means and ways in which these children can purchase the games in first place, if they're not the ones actively making the purchase for the children already. It's driving me up the wall how parents are seeking to shift the blame for their own shitty children onto everyone but themselves. They're "YOUR" children, take some responsibility for them.