Recent decisions by the British government have led to pornography websites being filtered out by the country’s internet service providers. The move was controversial enough when it begun, and it doesn’t seem to be quietening down anytime soon; the BBC revealed this week that filtered internet sites include sexual health and sex education pages.
The UK’s four biggest internet service providers have all begun rolling out pornography-blocking filters; British Prime Minister David Cameron welcomed the filters as an important step in keeping children safe on the internet. Whilst the aim to safeguard children from hardcore pornography or disturbing images on the internet is certainly noble, the plan does not seem to be working out as smoothly as intended.
All major internet service providers within the UK have now launched the filters as a default, but a few too many websites are being caught in the net. Service provider TalkTalk blocked award-winning sex education site BishUK.com, as well as the Edinburgh Women’s Rape and Sexual Abuse Centre. To add insult to injury, the filter also failed to block 7% of the pornographic websites tested by the BBC’s Newsnight.
