The South African Law Reform Commission has published a discussion paper on “pornography and children”, where it proposes the blocking of Internet porn by default.

The Commission is an independent advisory statutory body established by the South African Law Reform Commission Act.

Its paper is focused on proposals which will protect children from “exposure to pornography and child sexual abuse material”.

“The Commission provisionally recommends that legislation should comprehensively criminalise all acts of exposing children to pornography and content not suitable for children, in whatever manner, including through advertisement and enticement or by making use of misleading techniques,” it stated.

Default blocking

As part of its recommendations, it said that all devices – new and second-hand – be issued or returned “to a default setting that blocks inappropriate content, with an opt-in possibility depending on proof of age of the buyer/user as being 18 and older”.

“Giving effect to this recommendation will serve to protect both the child and the provider, though regulations will be required to provide for effective implementation.”

It goes on to explain that this will require:

Manufacturers or distributors of any technology or device that can access the Internet to ensure that default settings block access to child sexual abuse material or pornography.

Electronic communications service providers to ensure that default settings blocks access to child sexual abuse material or pornography.

The “porn block” extends to companies which unlawfully and intentionally advertise pornography to children, and anyone who uninstalls these default blocking settings and allow a child to access porn.

The Commission’s report goes on to state that it will also be an offence to not keep a register of when the default blocks have been removed.

Porn register

The move by the Commission comes weeks before the UK is set to implement its own “porn block”.

As reported by TechRadar, the UK will implement a default block on 15 July 2019, which will see all UK Internet service providers having to confirm if users are over 18 before letting them access porn sites.

“Adult websites will need to show a splash screen to UK users when they arrive on the site. This interstitial screen must contain no adult material and should inform visitors that they must prove they are over 18 years old in order to continue,” stated the report.

A user must then use an “approved age verification system” and enter a username and password. All sites which serve users in the UK will have to implement this system.

The Verge reported that users will be able to verify their age using passports, driver’s licences, or credit cards. Porn passes will also be sold in shops for £4.99.

Privacy advocates have voiced concerns that this will allow for the creation of a “porn watcher database”, where the details of those who access adult sites are stored.

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