By Kayla DeKraker
Most of us know the internet isn’t a safe place for kids, but platforms like Roblox and Discord give predatory groups like 764 easy access to children.
“Parents and caregivers need to know and understand that 764, a rabid online gang, is targeting children online on social media sites, online gaming platforms, chat rooms, mobile apps,” Donna Rice Hughes, president and CEO of Enough Is Enough (EIE), said in a press release. “This group has demanded victims send them photos that are then used to extort them. It’s been reported that 764 will even host online gatherings so others can watch them torment their victims in real time. This is an extremely distressing threat to children online that both parents and youth need to be aware of.”
The press release pointed specifically to Discord and Roblox as sites where this gang preys on young, unsuspecting users.
In a March 6 public service announcement, the FBI warned the public of the dangerous group, saying there’s been “a sharp increase in the activity of ‘764’ and other violent online networks which operate within the United States and around the globe.”
“These networks methodically target and exploit minors and other vulnerable individuals, and it is imperative the public be made aware of the risk and the warning signs exhibited by victims,” the FBI continued. “These networks use threats, blackmail, and manipulation to coerce or extort victims into producing, sharing, or live-streaming acts of self-harm, animal cruelty, sexually explicit acts, and/or suicide. The footage is then circulated among members of the network to continue to extort victims and exert control over them.”
Recently, a 21-year-old leader of 764 was arrested for multiple child exploitation and pornography charges. EIE also said that a Maryland man with “loose ties” to 764 is facing “federal charges for allegedly using Roblox to ‘blackmail young girls, befriending them before coercing them to record video sex acts, to cut themselves, and to commit violent crimes.'”
Related: Senate Passes Bill to Protect Kids Online, but Will it Work?
Currently the FBI has over 250 investigations related to the internet gang in the works.
Hughes praised the “FBI and DOJ for aggressively dealing with this group and setting a precedent that depraved criminals like 764 will be hunted down under the leadership of AG Bondi.”
She added, “The first step to protect children is for parents to know about this threat and other real and present online dangers to their children, as many are unaware of 764. It’s critical that Congress passes online child protection legislation like the Kids Online Safety Act, which will give online tech platforms a legal ‘duty of care’ obligation to prevent harms to minors, and require the strongest safety settings for youth and guardians.”
KOSA, which passed the Senate earlier this year, creates “a duty for online platforms to prevent and mitigate specific dangers to minors, including promotion of suicide, eating disorders, substance abuse, sexual exploitation, and advertisements for certain illegal products (e.g. tobacco and alcohol).” Other features of the bill give parents more control over their child’s time online and requires the highest privacy settings for kids.
As people and organizations continues to work together to fight child exploitation, our prayer is that there will be a day where offenders are held to justice and children are safe.
Read Next: Discord Rolls Out New Parent Controls, But Is It Enough to Keep Kids Safe?
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