Cheshire Police Officers are pointing out that paedophiles may use gaming networks to contact and groom children, in the same way that they use other parts of the internet.
They say parents need to be aware of the danger and to take necessary precautions. In particular, they emphasise, parents should be wary of installing an internet-enabled games console in a child′s bedroom where a boy or girl may use it alone for long periods.
Detective Sergeant Mark Fletcher from the Cheshire Police Paedophile Unit said: "Most parents are aware that sex offenders go on the internet, often posing as children, to make contact with youngsters. There is just not the same degree of awareness about games.
"Recently a woman from Essex was given a suspended prison sentence, ordered to do community service and put on the sex offenders register for inciting a child to commit a sex act and other offences. The case involved a boy from Cheshire who she met while playing a game on Xbox Live. He was then fourteen. Over a period of eighteen months she pretended to be a 25 years old single nurse, when, in reality, she was 33, with a partner and two children.
"Someone intent on grooming a child can make contact by playing a game and then move on to an internet chat area." Parents need to realize this and to take the same precautions they should apply to the internet generally.
"The first rule is to keep the console in a shared part of your home where a child is not going to be alone with it for any length of time.
"You need to impress on your children that they must never give out any personal information to people they meet on the internet. This applies especially to addresses, phone numbers and what school they go to.
You should also be suspicious. If your child tells you that someone they met playing a game wants to open up a line of contact which involves chatting, report it to Cheshire Police or on the CEOP website. The website also has all the information you need to protect children on the internet.
"Games consoles will be high on the wish list for a lot of children this Christmas. Make sure they enjoy them in safety."