Internet Watch Foundation
From Seenoevil
The Internet Watch Foundation (IWF) is a UK organization formed in 1996 from an agreement between the government, police and the internet service provider industry as a way to efficiently respond to online distribution of Child pornography and other illegal content.
In 1997, 18% of reported, potentially illegal content was hosted in the UK. The Internet Watch Foundation claims to have reduced this to under 0.2% as of July 2006.[1]
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The Website
The Internet Watch Foundation's website offers an on-line government-endorsed method for reporting suspect online material and remains the only such method available in the United Kingdom. Though the focus is currently child abuse, it also provides advice on a variety of online concerns, including chat rooms, instant, messaging, cyberstalking, identity theft, fraud and Spam
The IWF Child Abuse Image database
(Also know as the IWF child abuse website database, Child Abuse Images URL database, IWF URL database or simply the IWF database.)
This is a database of illegal content hosted on the web both inside and outside of the UK. Currently it only covers images covered by the Protection of Children Act as amended by the Sexual Offences Act 2003, i.e. 'sexual' images of children under the age of 18. Direct access to the database is restricted to approved IWF partners such as ISPs and the police. It is also used as the basis for the internet content blocking system, Cleanfeed which will be used by all ISPs by the end of 2007.
Pages are included on the database after examination by the IWF's trained internet content Analysts according to their understanding of the law. Website owners are not informed that their content is being blocked, but can appeal against inclusion should they find out. In such a case the material is reassessed by the IWF and advice sort from the Child Exploitation and Online Protection Team or the Pedophile Unit of the Metropolitan Police. They consider this reassessment final.[2]
Accountability
IWF policies are subject to approval by the IWF Board. The systems and processes for managing the URLs that are added to the IWF database are inspected and audited by independent external examiners on behalf of the Home Office.
