Chat room beat for the police

POLICE officers worldwide are to patrol the virtual world of internet chat rooms as part of a massive international effort to tackle paedophiles operating on the web, the National Crime Squad in Britain announced yesterday.

Officers from law enforcement agencies around the world will roam chat rooms 24 hours a day using an icon to let users know they are there in a bid to stop the practice of internet grooming.

They will engage and talk to other chat room users, acting as beat officers on the internet's virtual street, but will not be a "big brother"-style presence, said NCS Assistant Chief Constable Jim Gamble.

Plans to crack down on pay-per-view internet sites showing images of child abuse by working closely with credit card companies were also unveiled yesterday.

The NCS said it wanted to ensure that credit cards were not used as "instruments of crime" and to work with law enforcement agencies, such as the FBI, to seize the assets of those profiting from child pornography websites.

The initiatives were announced following a three-day summit in London of the new International Virtual Global Taskforce, which aims to make the internet a safer place for children.

Mr Gamble said the main idea was to establish a visible police presence on the internet to deter paedophiles and reassure the public in a similar way to officers out patrolling the streets.

"First and foremost the police are going to be there overtly there is nothing covert about this," said Mr Gamble. "You could be in a chat room, you could be engaging in conversation with children. This internationally-recognised logo will appear in the Who's Here box in the corner and you will be able to engage that individual in conversation.

"Ultimately you will be able to approach them to ask them for advice and they will have the ability to direct you to the law enforcement assistant or other assistance you may need."