Cybertelecom Federal Internet Law & Policy An Educational Project

Children, Protection of

"An analogy is the relationship between swimming pools and children. Swimming pools can be dangerous for children. To protect them, one can install locks, put up fences, and deploy pool alarms. All of these measures are helpful, but by far the most important thing that one can do for one’s children is to teach them to swim." National Academies of Science, 2002

A great deal of content regulation is done with the governmental interest of protecting children. These laws seek both to protect children from harmful content, and, in the case of child pornography laws, protect children from being the subject of offensive content. Also included here are laws that protect children's privacy, and support Internet access for children at schools and libraries.

These content laws demonstrate a tension between the value of the Internet; and problematic content. [NAS 1] [COPA Exec Sum] [CIPA Report Exec Sum, Sec. II.A.] There is also a tension between a strong government interest of protecting children and the First Amendment. [COPA II]

Reports have identified the way in which content over the Internet causes risks for children:

• Harder for parents to supervise use
• Easier access to offensive content
• Access to content that is more extreme than content available in other forms
• Accidental access to objectionable content (ex/ content can be pushed at the individual through pop-ups, spam, mouse-trapping)
• Interaction with strangers / sexual predators

[NAS Report] [CIPA Report Exec Sum]

Online Safety Tools

• Software Solutions
  • Intro
  • Embedded in some operating systems: Windows Vista, Window 7, Mac X
  • Provided by network service providers
  • Bundled in off-the-shelf safety softwate
  • Filters
    • Whitelists: providing access to appropriate content [CIPA I.A.]
      • See dot KIDS dot US [COPA II.E.]
    • Blacklists: filtering or blocking access to inappropriate content [NAS 10] [COPA II.B.3] [CIPA I.A.]
      • See dot XXX [COPA II.E.]
    • Dynamic Filters
  • Monitor, Reports, Time Control [NAS 11] [COPA II.F.15.] [CIPA I.A.]
  • Time Control: Control amount of time online per day and when online
  • Monitors can report activity of individual online
  • Reports give parent information on what has been done, when sites have been accessed, any attempts to tamper with software
  • GetNetWise, Tools that Monitor Computer Activity
• Content
• Restricting the supply of inappropriate content including creating incentives for the mature content industry to restrict access to adults [NAS 11]
• Labels and Tags [COPA II.C] (can be used with both white and black lists)
  • Created by content creator or owner
  • Watermarks, Metatags, Embedded information
  • Semantic Information or/and reference numbers
• Flags & AUPs: Community flags violations of community standards, host investigates and enforces as appropriate
  • YouTube
  • Flickr
  • MySpace
  • FaceBook
  • Vimeo
  • Google Webpage Removal Request Tool
• Greenspace (Whitespace or Safezone)
  • dot kids dot us
  • Teen Second Life
• SafeSearch
  • Google
  • AOL
  • Flickr: Help: Content Filters: What is Safesearch
• Site Settings
  • iTunes: Using Parental Controls
• Education [NAS 9] [COPA II.A.2]
  • Kids, Parents, schools, Libraries, Social Welfare orgs
  • Education teachers - not just online safety, but how to take advantage of and incorporate online resources into curriculum [CIPA Study Sec. IV.A]
  • Materials produced by NGOs
  • Materials made available at network service provider sites
  • Reviews of online content and applications
    • Common Sense Media, Website Reviews Kids Websites,
• Best practices
  • Parental, including best practice guidelines for parents and technology
    • Education of children [CIPA Study Sec. IV.A]
    • Supervision of children [CIPA Study Sec. IV.A] [NAS 9]
      • Teaching online literacy
      • Use of onlie monitors and reports
      • Placement of computer in household / out in open [CIPA Study Sec. IV.A]
      • Review of social networking accounts
    • Family AUP
      • Model Family AUPs Available from NGOs
  • Schools: Internet Safety Policies (see CIPA)
    • Acceptable Use Policies
      • Posted - and splash page at log in that must be agreed to [CIPA Study Sec. IV.A.]
      • Placement of computer in household / out in open [CIPA Study Sec. IV.A]
  • Industry and industry initiatives
• Age Verification [COPA II.D.] [CIPA I.A.]

Chart from Executive Summary of COPA Commission Report (2000)

"Technologies and methods identified in the lower right quadrant are most effective and accessible while imposing fewer costs and adverse impacts. Those identified in the upper left quadrant are relatively ineffective and create the most adverse effects. After consideration of the information gathered through hearings and comments filed by a wide range of parties, the Commission concludes that no single technology or method will effectively protect children from harmful material online. Rather, the Commission determined that a combination of public education, consumer empowerment technologies and methods, increased enforcement of existing laws, and industry action are needed to address this concern. "

Table of What Federal Agencies Have Responsibility over What Child Safety Issues

Child Protection Laws Chronologically:

• S 431 KIDS Act of 2008 A bill to require convicted sex offenders to register online identifiers, and for other purposes (legislative background info on sex offenders webpage)
• Broadband Data Improvement Act Title II: Protecting Children in the 21st Century Act
  • Protecting Children in the 21 st Century Act, Pub. L. No. 110-385, Title II, 122 Stat. 4096 (2008)
  • S.1492 Broadband Data Improvement Act
    Title: A bill to improve the quality of federal and state data regarding the availability and quality of broadband services and to promote the deployment of affordable broadband services to all parts of the Nation.
    Sponsor: Sen Inouye, Daniel K. [HI] (introduced 5/24/2007)       Cosponsors (22)
    Latest Major Action: Became Public Law No: 110-385 [GPO: Text , PDF ]
    Senate Reports: 110-204
  • Introduced by Sen. Inouye and amended to include Sen. Steven 's Protecting Children in the 21st Century Act ( S. 49 ) - although perhaps in title only as the amendment varied greatly from the original language introduced by Sen. Stevens.
  • Sec. 212 calls on the FTC to engage in a public awareness campaign "to promote the safe use of the Internet by children." The FTC already has such a campaign known as OnGuard Online
  • Sec. 213 calls on the FTC to file a Report with Congress with regard to its activities pursuant to Sec. 103 (perhaps a typo).
  • Sec. 214 calls on the Department of Commerce to establish the Online Safety and Technology Working Group, which will look at industry efforts to promote online safety, and submit a report to congress within one year.
    • Interestingly, the working group will look at internet services obligation to report online child exploitation pursuant to the 10 year old law, 42 USC 13032 - but not Sen. McCain's new parallel obligation to report online child exploitation pursuant to the new PROTECT Our Children Act - I have previously groused over the intelligence of enacting two similar-but-not-the-same laws, leaving it to industry to pay attorneys lots of money to figure out the ambiguities of complying with both.
    • The new task force also will look at one of the Attorney General's long desire items, record retention by internet services - but wait! The new McCain Act in fact has a record retention provision in it
    • Not only was the McCain SAFE Act not harmonized with preexisting law, but it would appear that the McCain SAFE Act was not harmonized with the Steven's Protecting Children in the 21st Century Act.
  • Sec. 215 imposes a new requirement on school and libraries that receive subsidies from the FCC's erate program; they must teach Internet safety as a part of their Internet Safety Program. The State of Virginia and many other schools systems already had implemented such educational programs.
  • Sec. 216 gives us yet another statutory definition of the Internet. It happens to be verbatim the same definition as codified with the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act.
  • Sec. 221 amended FCC enforcement authority in order to give the FCC authority to prosecute the transportation, distribution or possession of child pornography.
• PROTECT Our Children Act of 2008: Allocated additional funds for law enforcement, and duplicated the reporting requirements of the Child Protection and Sexual Predator Punishment Act of 1998 (legislative background info on the PROTECT Act 2008 webpage)
• HR 4472 Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act of 2006 (legislative background info on sex offenders webpage)
• PROTECT Act of 2003: Sought to correct the unconstitutional flaws of the CPPA.
  • included the Truth in Domain Names Act of 2003 - which makes it criminal to use domain names to trick people into seeing obscenity or children into seeing content harmful to minors.
• S.2537 Dot Kids Implementation and Efficiency Act of 2002 creating a separate domain space fo kid friendly webpages .kids.us
• Children's Online Protection Act (COPA): A congressional response to the Communications Decency Act being ruled unconstitutional, COPA attempted to restrict the transmission of material “harmful to minors” over commercial world wide web sites. Litigation is ongoing but at every stage COPA has been ruled unconstitutional
• Children's Internet Protection Act (CIPA): CIPA requires that schools and libraries which receive subsidies from the FCC ERate program have in place an Internet Safety Program.
• Child Pornography Prevention Act (CPPA): Sought to make electronic images of child pornography illegal regardless of whether they actually involve a child. Since the articulated government interest is to protect children, if there is no child involved, then the government interest is not met and the censorship is overbroad; this was ruled unconstitutional.
• Child Protection and Sexual Predator Punishment Act of 1998: Requires ISPs to report known instances of child pornography.

Federal Agencies

• Department of H. Security
• Department of Justice
  • Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention
  • Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force Program
    • "The Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force Program helps state and local law enforcement agencies develop an effective response to cyber enticement and child pornography cases. This assistance encompasses forensic and investigative components, training and technical assistance, victim services, and community education. Forty-five state and regional task forces have been established across the U.S. The ICAC Program was developed in response to the increasing number of children and teenagers using the Internet, the proliferation of child pornography, and the heightened online activity by predators searching for unsupervised contact with underage victims. The FY 1998 Justice Appropriations Act (Pub. L. No. 105-119) directed OJJDP to create a national network of state and local law enforcement cyber units to investigate cases of child sexual exploitation (i.e., ICAC). In addition to assisting law enforcement with investigations, many ICACs also sponsor community outreach to help families understand rules for safe internet usage. Some of the ICAC Task Forces have developed their own educational materials. " [Inventory]
  • Criminal Division
  • Federal Bureau of Investigation
    • A Parent's Guide of Internet Safety

International

• ITU Child Online Protection (COP)

Private Sector Activity :: NGOs

• Ad Council :: including information on cyberbullying, Online Sexual Explotation
• Center for Missing and Exploited Children
  • NetSmartz : "The NetSmartz Workshop is an interactive, educational safety resource from the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children ® (NCMEC) and Boys & Girls Clubs of America (BGCA) for children aged 5 to 17, parents, guardians, educators, and law enforcement that uses age-appropriate, 3-D activities to teach children how to stay safer on the Internet."

• Center for Safe and Responsible Internet Use
• Common Sense Media : "Common Sense Media is dedicated to improving the media and entertainment lives of kids and families. We exist because media and entertainment profoundly impact the social, emotional, and physical development of our nation's children. As a non-partisan, not-for-profit organization, we provide trustworthy information and tools, as well as an independent forum, so that families can have a choice and a voice about the media they consume."
• Connect Safely
• Crimes Against Children Research Center, University of New Hampshire,
• CyberAngels
• MIT Digital Nations
• Enough is Enough

• Online Child Safety, Privacy, and Free Speech: An Overview of Challenges in Congress & the States July 2009

  Online child safety and literacy View more presentations from Pew Internet & American Life Project, Pew Research Center.

  Family Online Safety Institute About ICRA (voluntary web rating)
• GetNetWise : "is a public service brought to you by a wide range of Internet industry corporations and public interest organizations . The GetNetWise coalition wants Internet users to be only "one click away" from the resources they need to make informed decisions about their family's use of the Internet."
• European Commission INHOPE "INHOPE is the International Association of Internet Hotlines and was founded in 1999 under the EC Safer Internet Action Plan."
• iKeepSafe
• Internet Safety Technical Task Force " The Task Force, comprised of leading Internet businesses and organizations, will focus on identifying effective online safety tools and technologies that can be used by many companies across multiple platforms. " Berkman Press Release Feb. 2008.
• iSAFE : " i-SAFE Inc. is the worldwide leader in Internet safety education. Founded in 1998 and endorsed by the U.S. Congress, i-SAFE is a non-profit foundation dedicated to protecting the online experiences of youth everywhere. i-SAFE incorporates classroom curriculum with dynamic community outreach to empower students, teachers, parents, law enforcement, and concerned adults to make the Internet a safer place. Please join us today in the fight to safeguard our children's online experience."
• National Cyber Security Alliance "NCSA's mission is to empower and support digital citizens to use the InternetG securely and safely, protecting themselves and the cyber infrastructure. " Funded in part by DHS.
• Safe Surfing USA Foundation : " works to educate the public about Internet crimes against children and how communities can protect their children from becoming victims. "
• StopTextBully:
• Teach Today EU "TeachToday provides resources for teachers on the responsible and safe use of new communications technologies."
• WiredSafety : " WiredSafety provides help, information and education to Internet and mobile device users of all ages. We help victims of cyberabuse ranging from online fraud, cyberstalking and child safety, to hacking and malicious code attacks. We also help parents with issues, such as MySpace and cyberbullying."
• WebWiseKids : "is about empowering today's youth to make wise choices online. Through state-of-the-art Internet Safety computer games (based on real-life scenarios) as well as Internet Safety tips for kids, teens and parents, Web Wise Kids creates a safer, friendlier internet experience. These, coupled with involvement of community, youth leaders and parents, provides an environment where your child's Internet Safety becomes their first line of defense while navigating through cyberspace."
• Working to Halt Online Abuse:

Private Sector Activity :: Industry

• AOL
  • Safety Clicks
  • Parental Controls (free and available to anyone)
• AT&T Smart Limits
• Cable Point Smart. Click Safe.
• Power to Learn: a service of Cablevision, Internet Smarts
• Charter Communications
• Comcast Security Channel (McAfee)
• Cox Take Charge
• Disney Online Safety
• Google
  • Tips for Online Safety : In cooperation with Common Sense Media.
  • Safe Search
• Microsoft Security at Home
  • Protect Children Online
  • VISTA Parental Controls
• Myspace Safety
• Sprint 4NetSafety
• Verizon Safety & Security :: Verizon Parental Control Center ::

News

• Why Is NY's AG Urging ISPs To Embrace Spyware Company? - The slippery slope down the deep packet inspection mountain., dslreports 10/21/2008
• Giganews Deconstructs Cuomo's Child Porn 'Crackdown' - Political stunt over-emphasized problem, didn't accomplish much, dslreports 10/15/2008
• Bill Signed by President: S.1492 Protecting Children in the 21st Century Act, Open Congress 10/15/2008
• Congress Thinks of the Children: S.1738 PROTECT Our Children Act of 2008, CT 10/15/2008
• New Internet Parental Controls Reviews, Filtering Facts 5/28/2009
• Shocker: No Easy Tech Fix To Keep Kids Safe Online, Techdirt 1/15/2009
• Beyond the Bailout: Congress Passes a Flurry of 'Child Safety' Bills, CDT 10/8/2008
• Online Child Safety, Privacy, and Free Speech: An Overview of Challenges in Congress & the States, Nextgenweb 7/27/2009
• Online Safety Blogosphere Roundup July 21, 2009, Filtering Facts 7/27/2009
• Online Safety Blogosphere Round Up July 7 2009, Filtering Facts 7/7/2009
• YouTube Is Top Kid Destination; How To Enjoy It Safely, Ask Mariam 7/2/2009
• Online Safety Blogosphere Round Up 06/30/2009, Filtering Facts 7/2/2009
• Online Safety Blogosphere Round Up 6/24/09, Filtering Facts 6/30/2009
• Will Green Dam backfire?, Net Effect 6/25/2009
• Net Nanny for Mac 2.0 Released, Filtering Facts 6/9/2009
• Broadband Now: Online Safety, USTelecom 6/5/2009
• SAFE Internet Act Would Fund Internet Safety Programs, Filtering Facts 5/19/2009
• NPR's Talk of the Nation on Online Safety, Palfrey 5/7/2009
• Security Scene: Family Safety Contract, Comcast 5/1/2009
• Teens Want To Interact With Their Friends, Not Strangers, Online, Techdirt 4/9/2009
• FOSI Hosts 'Online on Wednesday' Hill Panels to Promote a New Culture of Responsibility, FOSI 3/24/2009
• Save the children? ICANN opens debate on CyberSafety charter, Ars Technica 3/24/2009
• First rule of Internet censorship: Hide the block list, Ars Technica 3/18/2009
• Children work round web controls, BBC 3/18/2009
• Dialogue: the future of online obscenity and social networks, Ars Technica 3/10/2009
• Group Reveals There Are Ways To Fight Child Porn Other Than Useless Web Filters, Techdirt 3/10/2009
• New PFF Study: "Who Needs Parental Controls?", PFF 3/3/2009
• Safer social networking and self regulation, Google 2/12/2009
• Sex offender arrested for violating parole on MySpace, CNET 2/5/2009
• Policy Point - Wireless Child Safety, CTIA 1/29/2009
• Social Networks Awash in Paedophilia, Terrorism . . . and Gullibility, Tech Lib Front 1/27/2009
• Report Calls Online Threats to Children Overblown, nyt 1/15/2009
• Julius Genachowski to Be Nominee for F.C.C. Chairman, NYT 1/15/2009
• Internet Safety Technical Task Force Releases Final Report on Enhancing Child Safety and Online Technologies, Internet Safety TF 1/15/2009
• New Report Urges Obama to Focus on Internet Safety for Children , Wash Post 12/10/2008
• Child Safety on the Internet, CISCO 12/5/2008
• Online Safety and Technology Advisors Sought, NTIA 11/25/2008
• State AGs + NCMEC = The Net's New Regulators?, Tech Liberation Front 11/25/2008
• Keeping the Internet Devoid of Sexual Predators Act (KIDS Act), Cybertelecom 11/13/2008