Yes, there was a random incident where folks were getting robbed at a spot where the Pokemon appears (you are an idiot if you are wandering around secluded locations late at night), so now Team Fearmonger warns to prepare for trouble and make it double.
What kind of Pokemon would you find at the Suffolk County Legislative/ PFML and Fox 10 Phoenix regions? How about Clefucktards, Machumps, Pidgidiots, and 'Tardmanders.
Seriously, I think whoever came up with this deserves a swift kick in the Pokeballs. We need to erRATICATE all this fearmongering. (Okay okay, I'll stop with the Pokemon puns.)
http://www.fox10phoenix.com/news/arizona-news/173079163-story
Pokemon Go has location at sex offender residence
Marc Martinez
POSTED:JUL 11 2016 09:02PM MST
UPDATED:JUL 12 2016 09:50AM MST
It's a game that has everyone talking, and everyone playing, even adults.
Pokemon Go has become an overnight phenomenon, and while it's meant to be all fun and games, it has put some players in danger. The game which mixes fantasy with reality gets people out and about, looking for and capturing Pokemon characters and other prizes using their phones.
But since the game's release, it's been linked to robberies and the discovery of a dead body. Now there is a new risk closer to home which could have unsuspecting players walking right into what could be a dangerous situation. One of the locations is a hotel turned halfway house for dozens of registered sex offenders.
One of the beacons used in the game is the New Windsor Hotel. It's on the list of historic places which is why it may be on the Pokemon Go app. But when you search Arizona's DPS Sex Offender Registry, you'll see 546 W Adams Street is home to 43 registered sex offenders.
That was news to one Pokemon Go player, Kyle Costello.
"It's a little bit concerning, but when you're walking around you don't have to be there, you only have to be like 100 feet to get the rewards from the location," said Costello.
It's a good reminder for parents with kids playing the game to find out where exactly they're going.
"Look at it as you would Halloween and trick or treating. Just make sure that if you have young children that you're the chaperon. That you accompany them," said Daphne Young.
Young is with Childhelp Children's Center of Arizona. She says it's a good idea to keep location tracking on your kids' phones when they're out searching for Pokemon.
http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2016/07/12/pokemon-go-crime-worries/
Pokémon Go Craze Sparks Worries About Sex Offenders, Cybercriminals
July 12, 2016 6:48 PM
Filed Under: Cybercriminals, Jennifer McLogan, Pokemon Go, Sex Offenders
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BABYLON, N.Y. (CBSNewYork) — The Pokémon Go app has been all the rage in recent days, but new concerns have mounted about criminals abusing the game.
As CBS2’s Jennifer McLogan reported, there are worries that sex offenders might use the app to lure children, and cybercriminals might steal people’s information.
Sulma Rivas is part of a Pokémon Go scavenger hunt adventure craze. So are her three children.
Rivas keeps a watchful eye.
“I don’t want to do it when my mom’s not around, because I could get hurt,” said Mylie Rivas, 10.
Pokémon Go is exploding in popularity, and Babylon town officials have been monitoring hundreds of people of all ages circling the lake in Argyle Park – with their heads down and their smartphones in hand.
When asked if he was playing unsupervised, Ethan Fortaleza, 12, smiled and said, “Maybe.”
Ethan said his parents dropped him off in a safe area. But county officials are worried about the luring component of the game.
With 38,000 registered sex offenders in New York state, police fear that it might be easy for someone to fake a Pokémon Go ID and stalk a child player.
“The people who are the quickest to adapt to new trends in social media technology are criminals and predators,” said Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone.
Bellone wants Pokémon developer Niantic to install e-stop technology, making it tougher for predators to sign on and demanding more checks and balances.
After downloading the app, players are asked to sign up with their Google accounts, using existing credentials to ensure the process is fast and simple. But that can put at risk users’ emails, cameras, photos, and storage.
That pool of data could be a boon for cybercriminals.
“I haven’t heard anything about that. That would be unfortunate,” said Samara Katini, 21. “I probably wouldn’t play the game if that was a real problem.”
One computer crimes expert asked whether the possibility of privacy invasion was worth the tradeoff for the experience of Pokémon Go
Ninatic said it is working closely with authorities to keep all players safe. The company said it has no plans to share the data it collects with third parties.
http://longisland.news12.com/news/officials-pok%C3%A9mon-go-could-be-used-to-lure-crime-victims-1.12035312
Officials: 'Pokemon Go' could be used to lure crime victims
Updated July 12, 2016 5:24 PM
HAUPPAGUE - The "Pokemon Go" craze that is sweeping across America has some parents and officials in Suffolk County worried about potential predators.
Parents for Megan's Law and Suffolk County officials met Tuesday in an effort to warn parents about the dangers behind the virtual scavenger hunt app.
They say an option in the app allows users to "lure" people to a location to get points in the game.
Suffolk Police Commissioner Tim Sini says criminals will see the option as an opportunity.
"They could be lying in the wait to do a robbery, or it could be worse in terms of a sexual predator situation," says Sini.
Suffolk Executive Steve Bellone is calling on the Pokemon company to check its users against those on the E-Stop registry – the online registry of sex offender emails and social media accounts.
Another issue that has been raised is the app automatically granting full access to Google accounts. The app requires a Gmail account to sign in.
A spokesman for Pokemon Go issued a statement saying once they became aware of what they call an "error," they began working on a fix to only request basic google profile information.
The company had "no information to share" on the sex offender concerns.
