A first of its kind crackdown takes the joysticks away from sex offenders. The state of New York is now working with gaming companies to keep sex offenders off of online gaming systems-- like Xbox Live, where they could potentially have access to children.

"Sex offenders in Oklahoma are typically prohibited from being around schools, parks, daycares-- any place where children typically would be found," says David Slane, Fox 25 Legal Analyst. These days, that also includes the internet. Yet, all across the country, many sex offenders have still had access to online gaming systems-- where they can potentially chat and play with children. "When these rules were adopted in Oklahoma, we never envisioned the internet to be quite what it is today," says Slane.

But, the state of New York is putting an end to that with Operation Game Over. "The authorities in New York are trying to work in cooperation with many of the gaming companies online," says Slane. By law, sex offenders in New York are required to register their email addresses and screen names with the state. The state then hands that information over to cooperating companie who ban the sex offenders from playing on their systems.

"I think it's great, I think we should do that here," one parent told Fox 25's Kisha Henry.

Slane says New York has set a precedent and it absolutely could happen here. "States are going to begin partnerships with private companies and ask that certain groups of people, like sex offenders, be prohibited from being on the sites."

But, he does not see the initiative as "fool proof." He says parents cannot solely rely on the state to keep their kids safe. "Parents have to be the front line. They've got to monitor their children. They've got to monitor what games, what sites, and who they're with," he says.