Parental filters for pornographic content will come as a default setting for all homes in the UK by the end of 2013, says David Cameron’s special adviser on preventing the sexualization and commercialization of childhood, Claire Perry MP.
Internet service providers (ISP) will be expected to provide filtering technology to new and existing customers with an emphasis on opting out, rather than opting in.
“[In the UK] we will have filters where if you do nothing, the parental filters will come pre-ticked,” said Perry, speaking at a Westminster eForum on 14 June.
The move is part of a government effort to force ISPs to make filtering a standard option across industry and to make the technology easier for consumers to use. As ISPs are voluntarily rolling out filtering technology, it will require no new legislation or regulations.
Features such as time-limited deactivation of filtering and email updates when filter settings are changed are expected to become widespread. “We will have automatic put on, so if you turn the filter off at 9pm, it turns on again at 7am,” said Perry.
Culture Secretary Maria Miller recently summoned major tech firms and ISPs like Google and BT to a meeting on June 17 to discuss the policing of illegal content online, a separate issue to underage access to pornographic images. Ahead of the meeting, Google donated £1 million ($1,570,400) to child sexual abuse charity Internet Watch Foundation.
Read more at: Ars Technica
