A mandatory internet web fitter is to be introduced soon, the federal government announced late last year. This filter, which is intended to prevent consumers receiving Refused Classification (RC) content, will be deployed by internet service providers (ISPs) to block material that includes child sex abuse content, bestiality and sexual violence, as well as crime and drug use information.
The Department of Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy, which conducted a trial of internet filtering with several ISPs during 2009, released a report on its results that found blocking RC-rated material can be done with 100% accuracy and little impact on internet speed, according to Stephen Conroy, Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy.
However, the fitter has been controversial and attracted many critics since it was first proposed, including ISPs and computer system administrators along with civil liberties and activist groups. They've argued it won't be effective due to the difficulty of tittering the internet without affecting speed and usability. Furthermore, critics have questioned the effectiveness of a fitter that does not include peer-to-peer internet transfer, which can stilt be used to transmit offensive material. They're also worried about the criteria by which websites will be classified as RC.
In response, the government will extend the Cyber Safety Online Helpline to improve education and awareness about safety online, and offer grants to ISPs to encourage additional internet filtering services for households wanting to increase the material that is blocked.
Page, Rosalyn. "'Clean-feed' filter to go ahead: a proposed web protection scheme may create more problems than it solves." Choice [Chippendale, Australia] Feb. 2010: 7. General OneFile. Web. 28 Nov. 2010.
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