Should ISPs block access to illegal websites?

Graham Cluley
Graham Cluley
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According to media reports, ISPs providing broadband access to 5% of the UK’s internet users have failed to implement a system that blocks access to websites containing illegal images of child abuse.

This is despite the British government asking all ISPs to implement a blocking list supplied by the Internet Watch Foundation (IWF) by the end of 2007.

Children’s charities such as the NSPCC believe that, by not blocking access to the child abuse websites, ISPs are helping paedophiles trade in illegal images, which ultimately encourages more sexual abuse of minors.

The IWF found itself in the headlines late last year after it controversially blocked access to a Wikipedia page that showed a heavy metal album cover including the image of a naked girl.

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I’m not saying that the IWF is perfect, and that it might never make mistakes (although in my opinion, if that album cover image had been brought to a British court of law it probably would have been deemed illegal), but I cannot believe that most internet users would have a problem with their broadband provider blocking access to child abuse sites.

If you feel the same – why not ask your internet provider if they’re using the IWF block list? And if not, why not?

[polldaddy poll=1398169]

By the way, I should declare that Sophos is a partner of the IWF. We regularly share with them intelligence we have collected about unpleasant stuff we have found on the net, including websites and spam containing child abuse material.


Graham Cluley is an award-winning keynote speaker who has given presentations around the world about cybersecurity, hackers, and online privacy. A veteran of the computer security industry since the early 1990s, he wrote the first ever version of Dr Solomon's Anti-Virus Toolkit for Windows, makes regular media appearances, and is the co-host of the popular "The AI Fix" and "Smashing Security" podcasts. Follow him on Bluesky and Mastodon, or drop him an email.

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