Child Gaming Becoming Gambling
Parents started contacting GamBlock® some time ago requesting that we block purchases on Steam, so we give people the irreversible choice to block purchases on Steam. Parents are finding children as young as six up at midnight fixated with games containing loot boxes and children as young as twelve are receiving gambling harm counselling. Some countries have banned game micro-transactions, however, children know how to use a virtual private network, proxy sites, Tor and the like to bypass country restrictions. GamBlock® does not block via VPN and so children remain protected. GamBlock® can also be customised to block other types of gaming features that put children at risk of gambling.
The level of stress parents I speak with is palpable. I have also noticed the intense friction that can occur between children and parents when a parent stops their child from gambling. Some children are assaulting parents, while others go onto the Dark Web via Tor for example and take other peoples’ credit card details to gamble. GamBlock® also blocks gambling on Tor.
David Warr
Creator of GamBlock®