Chatroulette.com cracking down on perverts

Chatroulette.com is cracking down on unsavory behavior by capturing pictures and Internet addresses of people being naughty at the service that randomly links strangers using live webcams.

"Chatroulette was great in the first honeymoon days after it was launched, before it was discovered by strange people who started to abuse the true freedom and democratic nature of the service," founder Andrey Ternovskiy said in a blog post.

The Russian teenager explained that Chatroulette has begun capturing computer "IP" numbers that serve as online addresses along video screenshots that "prove wrong behavior."

Chatroulette has been denounced by some critics as a hotbed of exhibitionism and voyeurism.

A message at the Chatroulette home page on Tuesday warned "Broadcasting inappropriate content to minors is a violation of both US and UN law" and noted that the website is cooperating with police.

"Luckily we all live in a real world, and we can easily apply the laws of a real world even on an Internet application," said Ternovskiy, who launched Chatroulette in November.

"I hope that with help of criminal law we can finally get the problem out of our shoulders and get existing organizations which usually solve these kinds of problems to help us."

Lascivious antics by users have marred Chatroulette's image and presented challenges to winning investors and operating legally in the United States, according to Ternovskiy.

"We've blocked thousands of IP addresses, reported offenders and service seems to be much cleaner than before," the website's creator said.

"That is cool. The future seems to be bright."

(c) 2010 AFP