UK urges broadband firms to block porn websites to protect children

Most British Internet providers stopped people inadvertently viewing child pornography websites

The UK government has urged Internet service providers to block access to pornographic websites to help combat the early sexualisation of children.

Ministers want BT, Virgin and other Internet providers to put access to pornography on an 'opt-in' basis, rather than opt-out and use the available computer parental controls, according to The Guardian.

According to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, communications minister Ed Vaizey is to meet Internet providers, including BT, Virgin Media and TalkTalk, to discuss changing the way pornography enters private homes.

Vaizey told the Sunday Times he was hoping that ISPs will get their acts together so the government don't have to legislate, but the government was keeping an eye on the situation and will have a new communications bill in the next couple of years, the report said.

Most British Internet providers have succeeded in preventing people inadvertently viewing child pornography websites. Now ministers want to see a similar effort to control adult pornography, unless requested.

Implementing the scheme to have control over access of pornography would be technically difficult and cost heavy, Internet providers had said, though some now seem willing to implement the scheme voluntarily.

In a parliamentary debate last month Conservative MP Claire Perry had urged the government to put pressure on companies, such as BT, Virgin, Talk Talk, BSkyB, Orange and 02, to install default measures to stop children accessing pornography online.

She also argued that 60% of nine- to 19-year-olds had found porn online, while only 15% of computer-literate parents knew how to use filters to block these sites from their children, the newspaper said.

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