New York sex offenders banned from playing Pokemon Go over fears of meeting children at PokeStops

In a bid to safeguard children who play the massively popular mobile game, New York's state department of corrections and community services is preventing around 3,000 registered sex offenders from playing Pokemon Go.

"Protecting New York's children is priority number one and as technology evolves, we must ensure these advances don't become new avenues for dangerous predators to prey on new victims," New York governor Andrew Cuomo said.

"These actions will provide safeguards for the players of these augmented reality games and help take one more tool away from those seeking to do harm to our children."

Software developer Niantic was also asked Cuomo to assist in preventing paedophiles from taking part in the game where players wander through various locations seeking out virtual Pokemon creatures. The democratic governor has yet to receive a reply from Niantic.

The software developer says players need to meet with age restrictions in order to play its games.

"You may use the services only if you are 13 years of age or older and capable of forming a binding contract and are not barred from using the services under applicable law," states the Niantic website.

Concerns were raised last week by state senator Jeff Klein, who suggested that game manufacturers make sure that virtual Pokemon creatures don't appear close to sexual predators' houses.

A recent report by Klein and Diane Savino showed that children playing the augmented reality game have unwittingly been sent to locations close to sex offender residences. A feature of the game, where, for a small fee, a "lure" can be bought to encourage traffic to a particular location, could be used by predators.

"Pokémon GO provided sex offenders with a virtual road map to our children. We know that pedophiles always seek new ways to lure victims and this new technology that entertains our kids, could also bring them close to dangerous individuals instead of Pokémon," Klein said in a statement.

"In fact, my Pokémon GO investigation uncovered a disturbing correlation between high level sex offenders' residences and in-game objectives. While this directive is a good first step, there's still more work to be done legislatively to protect children who use this technology and I will continue to monitor this situation. I applaud Governor Cuomo for taking action on my investigation within 48 hours to protect New York's children."

Senator Diane Savino said: "Sex offenders who download the game legally could pinpoint hot spots where children congregate, like pokestops or gyms, and meet them in person."