Texas Attorney General goes after GamesRadar

12:17 PM on 02.18.2008   |   Jim Sterling

39 comments

Stupid lawsuits ahoy! Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott has filed suit against GamesRadar because he feels it has not done enough to protect children -- wait ... what!?

What?

That's right. Because GamesRader uses a registration system similar to those of countless other Web sites, it has somehow violated the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) and placed countless lives in danger because of how it collects personal information details from its users. You know ... like hundreds of Web sites.

Somehow, all of this is grounds for a lawsuit, as Abbott seeks "damage, restitution, or other compensation on behalf of residents" of Texas. Representing Texan children who may be members of GamesRadar, Abbott intends to claim money for ... nothing in particular. 

GamesRadar says it is looking into the matter at hand, but has stated that owner Future US "strictly adheres to all laws and guidelines regarding content on [their] websites."

Good luck, Abbott, you'll need it. You'd have to sue the entire Internet before you can target one Web site for collecting personal information. Considering the hundreds of sites out there that do it, and your estimated age, you're not going to survive the possible completion of this stupid, senseless attempt to enforce the unenforceable.

If this suit succeeds, I will eat a clump of my own hair.