Digital drug peddlers target teens with iDoses

Spaced-out adolescents in headphones litter YouTube, some panting and others wincing as they listen to droning, pulsating soundtracks known as iDoses. They have fallen victim to an insidious new digital drug culture that preys on vulnerable young teens with money to burn. With nothing but an mp3 player and an internet account they can can legally download 'binaural' audio downloads that claim to deliver a “high” that can mimic drugs like LSD and Crystal Meth.

The prices of iDoses range from $US2.75 for a standard "heroin" track to $US199 to open up the "Gates of Hades", which promises listeners an enticing package of “Smoke and torment. Weeping and gnashing of teeth. Death. Destruction”.mWhile there is little scientific evidence to back up some of the outlandish claims on iDose websites – some schools in the US have written letters to parents and banned iPods and phones to block students from accessing them. National and NSW education officials say they have not yet seen any reports of school children downloading “digital drugs” in Australia, but drug abuse experts say it is only a matter of time before the craze catches on here.

“Safe, effective, and legal alternative to recreational and prescription drugs,” is how one I-Doser website describes its wares, but drug abuse experts are not concerned so much with the content of the downloads as the drug culture they promote to young and susceptible minds. “We are seeing drug culture seep more and more into the youth market, where people can make a quick buck. That is a very sad part of this that they are targeting the group most vulnerable - the young who see this as being a cool thing to do,” said Paul Dillon, founder of Drug and Alcohol Research and Training Australia.