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	Internet Child Porn Targeted Feds to Force Service Providers to Report Illegal Web Surfing By Stephen Maher The Chronicle-Herald November 23, 2009 http://thechronicleherald.ca/Front/1154175.html OTTAWA — The federal government plans to crack down on child pornography with a proposed law that will require Internet service providers to report web surfers who download illegal material. "Internet service providers will be compelled to notify police and safeguard evidence if they believe a child pornography offence has been committed," a senior government official said Sunday. The proposed law will also require Internet service providers to report any tips they receive about websites. "We've taken a number of steps, but we need to do more," said a government spokesman. "We think it will strengthen our ability to protect our children from sexual predators. " The government said it was motivated to act, in part, by a recent report from the federal ombudsman for victims of crime. The report, titled Every Image, Every Child, found the number of images of "serious child abuse" quadrupled from 2003 to 2007, and that there are more violent images of younger children. "The whole idea is that online child pornography is increasing," said the official. The proposed law, he said, "will help police rescue these young victims and help police prosecute the criminals responsible." In September, Roman Catholic Bishop Raymond Lahey of the Antigonish diocese was charged with one count each of possessing and importing child pornography, which led to headlines across the country. At the time, Julian Sher, author of One Child at a Time, about the hunt for child pornographers, said that Canada has failed to take aggressive measures to track down Canadians who sexually exploit children overseas or get tough in sentencing. "In one huge case where the Canadians led a huge investigation that led to a big international ring being busted, a lot of the Americans got five or 10 years (and) some of the Canadians heavily involved got 14 days to be served on weekends," he said. "It's a joke." It is possible that the proposed law will raise alarms among online privacy advocates, who have raised questions about two other bills that would give police greater access to online communication. Contact: smaher@herald.ca
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