Teenage gamers lured into cyber crime

CHILDREN hooked on gaming have been recruited by cyber-crime gangs, a senior police officer has warned.

Autistic teenage gamers are particularly targeted, with gangsters operating online exploiting their desire to fit into a virtual world that values their computing prowess.

By identifying teenagers who are willing to bend the rules and cheat at computer games, they are then able to draw them into criminality.

According to research, more than 80 per cent of cyber-criminals have a background in computer gaming and the pastime can provide a fast track for those who graduate to hacking, fraud and other online offences. Specialist detectives are now working with the gaming industry to identify at-risk teenagers and are developing initiatives that will help steer them towards careers in the legitimate computing world.

The warnings come as the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) announced that every force in the country now has its own dedicated cyber-crime unit.

Speaking at the official launch of the multimillion pound programme, Chief Constable Peter Goodman – who is the NPCC lead on cyber crime – said online offences could not be ignored simply because there was national concern about the knife crime epidemic.

He said: “We are all very concerned about knife crime but it should not be a case of ‘either or’. Cyber crime is a tier one national security risk, alongside terrorism so we have a responsibility to ensure that we have an effective law enforcement response.

“This is the new criminality, it is the new way that criminals are finding victims and the new way in which they are making a profit.”

Chief Constable Goodman said as well as investigating offences and helping victims, local cyber-crime teams would work to divert youngsters away from becoming involved in illegality on the web.

“When we look at this particular group of offenders and we look back into their history, 82 per cent are engaged in gaming as a pastime,” he said.