Germany backtracks on porn law

2009 law to censor sites is lifted after outcry from online providers.

The proposal required ISPs to block a list of child porn websites submitted by Germany’s federal Criminal Police Office.

Few would argue against the spirit of the proposal, but critics feared it would not be successful and would end up in Internet censorship that punished legitimate adult sites.

The Association of Sites Advocating Child Protection advocates the use of its child pornography reporting hotline, which notifies ISPs when child pornography is sourced and notifies relevant authorities and international hotlines.

Tim Henning, exec director of ASACP, told Xbiz: “ASACP is against internet censorship in general and specifically as a way to fight Internet child pornography.

“Censorship is simply not an effective means to combat this problem. Going after the producers and distributors as well as attacking their ability to host and bill for child pornography is the most efficient and effective means of combating this heinous crime.”