Internet Providers to Block Child Pornography Sites

Some of the nation's largest Internet service providers have agreed to block connections to newsgroups and Web sites that offer child pornography, according to an announcement today by the New York State Attorney General's Office.

The move follows an eight-month child pornography investigation. The probe turned up 88 newsgroups involving11,390 sexually lewd photos featuring prepubescent children. Among them were photos of children being raped and sexual activity involving animals, according to state Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo.

The agreements with Sprint, Verizon and Time Warner Cable are expected to hold nationwide. It was not immediately known why the nation's other large Internet service providers were not party to the agreement.

"We seek to continue the investigation with other providers," Cuomo said.

Child pornography, like many illegal Web offerings, is difficult to prosecute because the criminals can operate virtually anywhere. Even if they are detected, they can easily shut down and start business under a different Web site name.
ad_icon

But Cuomo said his strategy, while difficult, was better than simply identifying and prosecuting the users of child pornography.

"If you're just going to prosecute the users of the material, you can be doing that all day every day for the rest of your life," Cuomo said. "You have to get to the suppliers."

While Internet users are most familiar with Web sites, newsgroups are different. They're essentially online public bulletin boards where users can upload and download files.

"As part of the agreements, Verizon, Time Warner Cable, and Sprint will for the first time completely block access to all child porn Newsgroups," the statement from the attorney general's office said.