Criminals could use 'Pokémon Go' to 'target' and 'lure' children, charity warns

LONDON -- The UK's leading children's charity -- NSPCC -- has warned that offenders could use Pokémon Go's geolocation feature to "lure" and "target" children. 

In an open letter, NSPCC chief executive Peter Wanless urged Pokémon Go developers Nintendo and Niantic to re-evaluate the game's safety and to address concerns over child safety. 

The location-based game encourages users to go outside and catch Pokémon in your neighbourhood using an augmented reality map. 

Wanless said the app "appears susceptible to being hijacked by users who wish to harm other players and as such raises fundamental child safety concerns." 

However, despite NSPCC's request to delay the release of the augmented reality game in the UK, Pokémon Go was made available on both iOS and Android on Thursday morning.

The hugely popular game first launched last week in Australia, New Zealand and the U.S., making its European debut in Germany on Wednesday. 

"Within days of your product launching, there have been numerous accounts of children being placed in dangerous situations because of the geo-location feature," wrote Wanless. 

Indeed, Missouri police reported on Sunday that armed robbers used Pokémon Go to lure 11 teenage players to a secluded location where they were robbed at gunpoint. And, in Wyoming last week, the game led a teenager to a dead body in a river. 

“Using the geolocation feature,” Stringer said, “the robbers were able to anticipate the location and level of seclusion of unwitting victims.”

A spokesperson for the NSPCC told Mashable that the game's UK release was "deeply troubling" and that "well-documented child safety concerns" had been ignored.

"It would have been better if they had taken time to reflect on these and put their young users first," the spokesperson said. "It’s very disappointing that child safety isn’t at its heart."

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