Pokemon Go is the hottest mobile game sweeping the world. It can easily be downloaded onto a mobile device and it incorporates the physical world into the virtual world. In other words, its an augmented reality game.
Pokemon Go uses your phone's GPS and camera while you play the game. In addition, Techcrunch has reported that the game wants permission to collect a tremendous amount of your personal information. Generally, you should just say no to allowing for this type of personal data collection.
While there are thousands of games that can be downloaded onto your phone this appears to be the first popular augmented reality mobile game that has gained international traction. It has become so popular that criminals are utilizing it to rob and harm users. According to published reports, at least 9 Pokemon Go users have been lured and robbed while using the app.
It may be a matter of when and not if a Pokemon Go user who has become a victim of one of these crimes sues the game's publisher for creating an "attractive nuisance" or some other type of tort. Due to Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act it may be difficult for a potential Pokemon Go plaintiff to win a lawsuit based upon this or similar causes of action.
The bottom line is that users must understand the risks inherent when downloading and utilizing digital games. Just because something may look harmless on your phone, that doesn't make it necessarily so.
Copyright 2016 by Bradley S. Shear, Esq. All rights reserved.
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