European Commission's child abuse web-blocking plans criticised
The European Commission wants countries to force Internet Service Providers (ISPs) to block access to websites that contain material related to the sexual abuse of children. The move has been opposed by digital rights groups.
Some countries already operate systems of blocking, such as the UK's voluntary system run by the Internet Watch Foundation, a charity that is not a part of Government or the police, which maintains a list of sites which ISPs can choose to block.
The European Commission has proposed a new Directive on the sexual abuse and exploitation of children which proposes, amongst other measures, that countries force ISPs to block sites containing material depicting abuse.
"Member States shall take the necessary measures to obtain the removal of internet pages containing or disseminating child pornography," said a Commission statement summarising the proposed Directive.
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