Mail Bag: Paedophiles! Incest! Rape!

Author Topic: Mail Bag: Paedophiles! Incest! Rape!  (Read 48978 times)

Badspot

  • Administrator
Some woman named Mel Pedley has been emailing me.  She is worried that her two children would forget each other if only they knew how and that Blockland may be providing them with incest instructions

I would love for this to turn into a classic like the 7-legged spider but I'm afraid I'm not that clever.  However, she will almost certainly see this thread which should be interesting.   


Subject: Internet child grooming
Quote from: webmistress@blackwidows.co.uk
You appear to have 1 or more suspected paedophiles on your servers.

http://forum.blockland.us/index.php?topic=135521.0

In the United States, 18 U.S.C. § 2422 makes it a federal offense to use interstate mail etc. to entice a minor to loveual activity for which any person can be charged with a criminal offense. I also note that Virginia's Attorney General has taken a strong stance on this issue.

I can only assume, therefore, that you will deal with this matter quickly and effectively. If this does not happen, I will have no recourse but to take this matter further and begin contacting the relevant authorities.

I look forward to your comments.

Mel P.
--
Black Widow Web Design Ltd
www.blackwidows.co.uk
info@blackwidows.co.uk
Tel: 0151 280 7092

Black Widow Web Design Ltd. is a company registered in
England and Wales with company number 05464296.

Postal Address:
53 Woodhall Road
Old Swan
Liverpool
L13 3EE
Quote from: support@blockland.us
Where is the crime here exactly?  I'm not seeing it.
Quote from: webmistress@blackwidows.co.uk
> Where is the crime here exactly?  I'm not seeing it.


Did you check the screenshot in the linked post?

> > http://forum.blockland.us/index.php?topic=135521.0


Two of your users were encouraging others (including minors) to take researchographic photos of themselves. They were also inciting others to:

- commit rape
- commit incest (complete with instructions)*

This is being propagated by your service. As neither the service nor the server concerned is clearly labelled as adult content or unsuitable for minors, you (as the service provider) have a duty to ensure that these kinds of infractions are dealt with quickly and effectively. Judging by the previous posts about one of these users, this is not the first time s/he has indulged in this kind of activity. Yet they appear to go unpunished - implying that you are endorsing this behaviour.

Is your upstream provider aware of this? Do they allow adult content to be propagated via their service?

I am all too aware, through long experience, of the kinds of topics that are available via the Web and other Internet services. I have no argument with most of them as responsible adult providers usually clearly label their content before allowing admittance and go to great lengths to try and protect minors. As a professional web developer, I have worked on sites that I certainly would not want my children to see and, again, I had no problem with this.

However, it is very evident that your service attracts a significant number of minors, so you do need to address these issues. From what I have seen, they are being ignored and that's not on. I do sympathise with your situation but the bottom line is that it is your problem and you must deal with it.
*Emphasis added
Quote from: support@blockland.us
The conversation in the screenshot appears to be a joke.  Are you autistic?  That's a serious question, I don't want to be mean if you have some kind of socialization disorder that prevents you from understanding the context of a written conversation.  Right now it just looks like you're being deliberately oblivious to harass me for some reason.

On a technical note, the conversation is not taking place on my server.  The game allows people to create their own servers.  I cannot control what people say on their own computers nor do I want to.  It is not my place to police the behavior of everyone who happened to buy my product. 
Quote from: webmistress@blackwidows.co.uk

> The conversation in the screenshot appears to be a joke.


Your subjective opinion is immaterial. The users in question are addressing minors in a manner that breaches US federal laws via your service.


> Are you autistic?
> That's a serious question, I don't want to be mean if you have some kind of
> socialization disorder that prevents you from understanding the context of a
> written conversation.


Insults won't help. Since it is patently obvious that you are still refusing to take any responsibility, I have no option but to take the matter up with the authorities.
Quote from: support@blockland.us
I already explained this once but I guess you missed it:  They are not communicating via my website.  Blockland itself is not a website.  It is a computer program.  Users connect directly to each other via a UDP connection.  In this configuration it is not technologically possible for me to intercept and censor chat in the kind of totalitarian regime you seem to be proposing.

And what are you going to do exactly?  Ring up the FBI and explain that you found a program on the internet that allows users to communicate via text?  Good luck with that. 
Quote from: webmistress@blackwidows.co.uk
You have the ability to:

a) terminate the accounts of users who are acting inappropriately
or
b) clearly label the site & the associated software as unsuitable for minors.

You appear to be disinclined to do either.
Quote from: support@blockland.us
You have the ability to tell your children to not follow incest instructions they find on the internet.  Are you disinclined to do that?

I didn't realize that open text communication was categorically inappropriate for minors.  Maybe you should start harassing Crayola for not building censorship into their crayons or Post Cereals for making Alpha-Bits with out any kind of warning label about what sort of words you can make.  Maybe you should blind your children so they do not read anything inappropriate when there is not an authority figure there to protect them. 
Quote from: webmistress@blackwidows.co.uk
> You have the ability to tell your children to not follow incest instructions
> they find on the internet.  Are you disinclined to do that?

<snip pointless comments>

My 10 year old son knows exactly what do to when he sees this kind of inappropriate behaviour being targeted at minors. He took a screenshot and alerted me immediately. With my assistance, he reported the incident in your forum. Not only have you failed to even respond but you have allowed the report (which does reference potentially serious & criminal activity) to be abused and laughed at. One of the posters is even one of the offenders.

This negligent inaction and the entire thread (which incidentally also breaches your own forum's TOS) has also been also been collated to be passed onto the relevant authorities.
Quote from: support@blockland.us
So you reported the fact that people laughed at you on a forum?  What is the relevant authority for that?  You seem to know a lot more about this than I do. 
« Last Edit: November 23, 2010, 07:20:28 AM by Badspot »


NOEDIT: She is obviously paranoid about the Internet. I'm also laughing my lungs out at:

1. She linked to the Lord Tony drama post. I don't like him either.

2. She looks old and she works at or owns a web design company. Contradiction much?

3. I'm just laughing. Best drama topic ever.

I'm just laughing. Best drama topic ever.
excatly.
either this lady better get her son off the blockland forums, or just deal with it and not look at the drama section.
also, you have to be 13 to be on this forum.

I was Laughing until I realized I commented on that topic.

Warning - while you were reading a new reply has been posted. You may wish to review your post.

NINJAS!

I nearly died of laughter when the link pointed to Lord Tony's topic.

excatly.
either this lady better get her son off the blockland forums, or just deal with it and not look at the drama section.
also, you have to be 13 to be on this forum.

Warning - while you were reading a new reply has been posted. You may wish to review your post. \

I hope when she looked at that picture she looked at the jailtime and realized that her son was doing Criminal Activity.

Two of your users were encouraging others (including minors) to take researchographic photos of themselves. They were also inciting others to:

- commit rape
- commit incest (complete with instructions)

What? More than half 11 year olds know how to have love.

Hahahaha, this is hilarious on so many levels.


Lol


HEY GUYS LETS RAPE US SUM YOUNGINS




YEEEEEHAWWW

trololololoo

oh my god where is Lord Tony i need to brofist him because we've done well.

Hmm.. Perhaps sending her a link to the topic you just made would..
Or..
Nah, anyway.

Indeed, it's a multiplayer game. Even with severe implementation of censor, people would replace some letters with similar symbol / numbers.
Plus, the game is a international game, not limited to U.S. Residents, meaning people may use they language with their friends too I.E. French. and some words that are censored, might actually be a "legit" word in the language they are talking in. Or just a little misspell would lead into chat censored for no reason, even if the intention wasn't so.

My question is, is the mother of the so-called 10 Y.o. child know if the language her child is talking on the games (/internet) or even at school.
The teacher(s) at our school called us in so many ways...
And some people curse themselves... every hour... at my school at least.
... Well, in my country at least...

If her child are REALLY that stupid to follow the instructions, she should be actually be acused for buying the game before inspecting it (the forums etc.), and not implementing a Parental Protection on the computer.

I am not sure if I said stupid stuff or not, it's my opinion.


How on earth is that one snip "pointless"?  If someone makes a product, HOW can they possibly make sure that everything done with that product is not inappropriate or wrong. 

If someone is harassing you on a server or something makes you uncomfortable, LEAVE and don't return.

But I guess you can give credit to the mom for caring for her child.