Microsoft has become involved in the search for Brandon Crisp, a 15 year old from Barrie, Ontario, about 100 km north of Toronto. The company, which runs the Xbox Live service, has increased the reward amount for helping to find Brandon to $50,000, according to the CBC. They also said that they were open to the idea of getting information from the Xbox itself.Brandon went missing over the Canadian thanksgiving weekend, on October 13. His parents have said he became addicted to "Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare", and threatened to take his Xbox away. The child fled the home, and hasn't been seen since.
Brandon had also become involved in "teams" that competed on Live, which the parents say "gave him a new identity", and taking the Xbox away "stole that identity from him", which they believe is the root cause behind him running away.
Their largest worry at this point is that he's being held against his will, possibly by someone who he met through Microsoft's Xbox Live service. Microsoft is assisting to the best of their ability in the search, even breaking their privacy policy to try and find who may be responsible for the missing boy. Police are analyzing both Brandon's laptop and Xbox hard drive to try and find a new clue that could lead to a breakthrough in the search.
Several of his belongings, including his bike, have been found abandoned in the area of his home, leading both his parents and police to believe mischief may be behind his disappearance.
Hopefully the kid is found safe and sound, although it seems that might not be the case at this point
It really makes you think, though: I know this isn't the case for most people, but it really shows that video games can be very bad for people, particularly youths, if they play them too much. I'm only 16, and this is definitely making me realize how careful I should be.
It really makes you think, though: I know this isn't the case for most people, but it really shows that video games can be very bad for people, particularly youths, if they play them too much. I'm only 16, and this is definitely making me realize how careful I should be.
well said :-) video games for the majority are completely fine, and for me personally a great way to unwind. however there are some who may be 'outcasts' in real life and find that video games (particularly the multi-player aspect) offer them an escape from their less-than-optimal real life persona, some sort of neo-identity. i think parents should be more keen on their kid's gaming habits and regulate where regulation is needed! i gamed a lot when i was a teenager (i'm only 22 now) and i was lucky enough to have a great life that i didn't need to supplant, but my parents would have no doubt regulated if they saw the necessity. gaming's definitely a great thing but just like a lot of other things, it can be good and bad, depending on the person and the situation they're in!
good for Microsoft though, that's for dang sure!
It really makes you think, though: I know this isn't the case for most people, but it really shows that video games can be very bad for people, particularly youths, if they play them too much. I'm only 16, and this is definitely making me realize how careful I should be.
At sixteen you shouldn't be worrying about that, you should enjoy yourself and understand that some people are more susceptable to addiction at all levels, even if it's the internet, drugs, alcohol or playing on games. Not everybody needs to worry when something like this happens. Nobody should change their life now just because of what happened to this one person.
I just know that it'll be games that get blamed for this happening, when it shouldn't be. Think of how many people are playing games every day all over the world, and how many people is this happening too? Yet it'll still cause a riot about how games should be monitored better etc.
Uhh... its a sad thing he's missing and whatever .... but they shouldn't be breaking the privacy policy without just cause and legal action.
The kid got up and left after his parents took away his xbox. How is him being missing anyone but his own fault?
You mean besides the parents who let him get addicted in the first place?
Just to get this straight, if it's his own fault he deserves to be kidnapped and forced to do things against his will?
I mean if that's your honest opinion, so be it. I'm just a little bit more kind-hearted than you I guess.
Just cause is a legal term that is determined in court. Not just when one of the parties of the agreement see fit.
I don't think Microsoft would let you get away with it if you just broke their TOU or EULA whenever you wanted, so they shouldn't be able to either.
I don't think Microsoft would let you get away with it if you just broke their TOU or EULA whenever you wanted, so they shouldn't be able to either.
It's a safe bet that his parents are okay with it.
I mean if that's your honest opinion, so be it. I'm just a little bit more kind-hearted than you I guess.
Kids must have a guardian until 18 years old if I'm correct.
I don't think Microsoft would let you get away with it if you just broke their TOU or EULA whenever you wanted, so they shouldn't be able to either.
MS did not have any choice to cooperate.
The police needed the list of his teammates and without MS cooperation would have get it by legal action. And just try to imgine the bad press toward MS if the authorities needed to take legal action to get those informations.
Anyway the game is rated M, that means 17+ in Canada and US... So how come that the kid could play this game? Blame the parents not the game!!!
Anyway the game is rated M, that means 17+ in Canada and US... So how come that the kid could play this game? Blame the parents not the game!!!
Bingo. The parents failed to see to it that their child would use either use video games in modernization or not at all. They let their child become so addicted to video games that he literally ran away from home rather than face the prospect of a day without his Xbox It's not the kids fault, and it's not the fault of a video game. Want someone to blame? Blame the parents. They were the ones in charge here. Their child. Their house. Their rules. Their fault. Period.
I think you chose the wrong word there bud. Moderation perhaps? Modernisation (or Modernization in American English) means something becomes more modern.
But isn't the point that it isn't Microsoft's information to give away. My list of friends belongs to me, not Microsoft. I pay Microsoft to keep that list of friends on their servers for my convenience. The data belongs to me and should not be given away.
However, as this kid is a minor, his parents probably gave permission to Microsoft as they are his legal guardians.
However, as this kid is a minor, his parents probably gave permission to Microsoft as they are his legal guardians.
The data is on microsoft's servers. They can use it as they want, and in this case they should. Dont want your data given away? Dont use Xbox live. You pay for them to maintain the service, not to protect your information.
They posted an agreement stating "we won't do the following things with your information…" then they did one or more of those things. Why is it acceptable for them to break their agreement in some situations (ie: to give information to the police) but not in others (give it to partner-advertisers)?
If the investigators think that whatever information Microsoft has is valuable then they could easily have obtained it through standard legal channels. The legal process for requesting information and Microsoft's privacy policy exist their clients: it's disturbing how readily some people will give up those protections if told it's really important and for a good cause. The same reasoning has allowed for things like extraordinary renditions on a record scale, the PATRIOT act, torture, illegal wire taps, etc.
If they aren't going to be held to their agreement, why even bother with having a privacy policy at all?
Last edited by basix on 26 Oct 2008 - 21:51
Hopefully they find him soon
Personally I think this is good on Microsofts part, its good they are getting involved and helping out the community, especially in finding a missing child. Considering the amount of "friends" the kid has, I wouldn't be suprised if he ran off to another players house and they aren't saying anything because it would jeopordize them losing a teamate for tournaments or something. One of my friends did that, ran away from home to join a professional gaming team. His parents filed a missings person report but he finally sent them an update 6 months later.
Personally I think this is good on Microsofts part, its good they are getting involved and helping out the community, especially in finding a missing child. Considering the amount of "friends" the kid has, I wouldn't be suprised if he ran off to another players house and they aren't saying anything because it would jeopordize them losing a teamate for tournaments or something. One of my friends did that, ran away from home to join a professional gaming team. His parents filed a missings person report but he finally sent them an update 6 months later.
I may be wrong, but follow this thought. If Microsoft couldn't sell game consoles, they would lose quite a bit of their cash. Now obviously the world would never ban game consoles, there's too many arguments against it being harmful, many of which could be true.
But what if the world got to the point where they did ban game consoles because things like this started to happen on a very large scale. Microsoft is trying to save face before anything even starts, and try to help as much as possible to avoid disaster.
Keep in mind this is just a string of thought from where the "hidden agenda" thing comes from, as I don't really believe this myself. But you know, we live in a world of possibility and change, and it wouldn't surprise me if something like this came up in the next 20-40 years.
Just saying, cheers.
just trying to get some publicity and some bad rep on M$
Microsoft recognise this and offer some money to try to help get the problem resolved so that the bad press doesn't linger at this critical time of the year. Potentially losing $50,000 now is much better than the amount they could lose through lost sales once the paranoia tightens its grip on the parents who chat outside the school gates. It's always about the money...
This is like Apple donating to the NO on Prop 8. Sure, they could gain from it, but aren't there more important things to look at, like the fact theu actually did it?
To them, a cash grab. To the rest of the world, something that helps nevertheless.
It isn't about increasing the volume of sales. It's about not losing sales. There is a wealth of difference between the two states. Bad press lingers and has the potential to affect the Christmas sales as word passes from parent to parent. The quicker the issue goes away, the better for Microsoft sales. Christmas is THE vital period for such companies.
Doesn't it strike you as even slightly odd that they only give a damn about lost children when the loss centres around their product? There are millions of other missing children. Do you suppose they will be stumping up cash for any of their safe returns too? I'll bet they don't but let's see shall we?
Last edited by SniperX on 27 Oct 2008 - 08:05
You want this?
"In other news: Microsoft hacks Nintendo servers to find a missing Wii Fit addict."
If anyone thinks your post doesn't pursue egoistic goal they are delusional. Don't you understand I can logically prove that you wrote this post to benefit yourself. It's always about benefits...
Er, yes. Thank you for your razor-sharp retort. You are indeed a master of the put-down response. Was that your way of saying that you disagree with me? Bless. How sweet.
You're totally wrong. It's not Microsoft fault if the kid flew away. It's parents. If it was the way you mean, why not blame it to Call Of Duty 4??? I mean, other games didn't do that, but COD4 did. It's not about the console or game.
This a is a parents-children issue, not a kid-game one.
Exactly. But he is right as the media IS looking at the video game aspect. As long as they are it is in Microsoft's best interest for this to go away. And yes, this is commendable on Microsoft's behalf.
The kid, if he did the whiny brat thing and ran away when his parents finally had enough, will be in for major trouble when he shows back up.
When a person goes missing, the first 48 hours are CRITICAL to finding that person alive. Using the "proper legal channels" would take WEEKS and literally ensure that the kid is dead long before a subpoena is issued.
I seriously hope none of you go missing, because by your own logic, you would have just signed your own death warrant with red tape.
Stop drinking the kool-aid and realize that in no way does this break the spirit of any privacy agreement. This was a temporary suspension of the rules in a time-critical issue to save the life of a young child.
Get some sense back into those skulls and pray to your god that this kid is found alive.
You would be more than grateful if your life was saved just because of your stupid little privacy policy that was broken and your account accessed and crucial information was retrieved!
In a way I do blame the parents for letting their kid play such long hours which in return became an addiction, that is why Microsoft added "Parental Control" to the console, so that parents have the SAY over how long and how much is played!
The fact that he is 15 years old doesn't justify anything, he's still a kid living at home and not an adult looking after himself!
Last edited by dragon-x on 29 Oct 2008 - 09:47
Last edited by AnandVVN on 12 Nov 2008 - 10:19
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