Tuesday, January 13, 2009

Web Safety Panel Unveils Final Report

An Internet safety task force made up of state attorneys general offices, academics, nonprofits and high-tech and telecommunications giants -- who had been under pressure from Congress to enhance online child protection capabilities -- capped off a year's worth of work Tuesday by releasing its final report. The 278-page document, which was shared with 52 attorneys general in December, makes a number of recommendations to the Internet community and parents.

The key takeaway from the group, which had representation from big names like America Online, AT&T, Comcast, Facebook, Google, Microsoft, Verizon and Yahoo: Attorneys general should not "endorse any one technology or set of technologies to protect minors online." State officials should continue to work collaboratively with stakeholders "to help enhance safety for minors online and reach out to some -- like those involved in mental health and social services -- who are not currently involved in helping find solutions to protect minors online."

According to the report, members of the Internet community, including social network sites, should continue to develop and incorporate a range of technologies as part of their strategy to protect minors from harm online. While they should consult with experts, technologists and law enforcement, they should not overly rely upon any single technology or group of technologies as the primary solution to protecting minors.

They should also work on developing and combining the most innovative and promising technologies; setting standards for the use of technologies and the sharing of data, as needed; and identifying and promoting best practices on how to implement technologies as they emerge and as problems facing minors online evolve, the paper said. Prior to implementing any high-tech safety tool, they should carefully consider what the data show regarding the actual risks to minors' safety online and how best to address them.

Parents should educate themselves about the Internet and the ways in which their children use it, as well as about technology in general, the report stated. They should explore and evaluate the effectiveness of available tools for their particular children and family context, and adopt those tools appropriately. Parents should also be engaged and involved in the Internet use of their children, discussing it from an early age, setting appropriate limits and instilling good behavior from the start, the task force recommended.

The Center for Democracy and Technology, which was part of the task force, endorsed the report. "The findings of the task force run counter to public perception and media hype that sexual predation is a rampant problem on social networks," CDT President Leslie Harris said. "The report also found that age verification technologies aren't the silver bullet many advocate as a way to protect kids online. "Age verification technology is not well suited for the social network environment, and it does not address the actual risks that minors face online," Harris added.

Child safety group Enough Is Enough issued a statement saying the Internet industry has "demonstrated a heightened sense of corporate responsibility" but challenges remain with respect to identity verification and authentication of minors online. EIE believes more research is needed regarding pornography's impact on youth, specifically with respect to fueling youth risky behaviors including the sexual solicitation of other youth and adults online, and youth-generated child pornography. Further studies are also needed to explore the impact of pornography on predators and in the sexual exploitation of children, EIE said.