Law to block access to porn on phones
Bill aims to protect children in wake of Ana case
PRE-PAY mobile phone customers will have to ask networks for access to pornography under new laws put forward in the wake of the Ana Kriegel murder.
The legislation will force mobile networks to create a new opt-in system and verify a customer’s age before allowing pornography to be viewed on a phone with a pay-as-yougo Sim card.
Customers will have to confirm they are at least 18 years of age at a network provider’s shop or with a customer support team under the measures being introduced by Fianna Fail TD Anne Rabbitte.
The legislation will also put an obligation on internet service providers to create an opt-out system on home broadband packages. This will allow parents to create new control filters on home internet connections.
Under the proposals, parents can ask their internet provider to block all pornography on a connection. The service provider would then be obliged to review this option with customers every year.
The new laws are similar to legislation already adopted elsewhere. But they are radically different to failed age verification laws that were proposed in the UK earlier this year.
The Protection of Children from Online Pornography Bill will be brought forward in the Dail as a private member’s bill in the New Year.
Ms Rabbitte, Fianna Fail’s spokesperson on children and youth affairs, said it should be progressed as a matter of urgency, considering the concern that emerged following the Ana Kriegel murder trial.
Two 15-year-old boys were found guilty earlier this year of murdering Ana Kriegel, who was 14, at an abandoned farmhouse in Lucan on May 14, 2018.
Her body was found by gardai three days after she was reported missing by her parents, Patric and Geraldine Kriegel.
Ana’s clothes showed evidence of having been forcibly removed.
One of the boys convicted of her murder, Boy A, was also convicted of aggravated sexual assault. Large amounts of pornography were discovered on his phone. His Google history showed searches for child porn and animal porn.
“The motivation is totally down to Ana Kriegel’s case,” Ms Rabbitte said.
“Children spoke about Ana’s case, parents and grandparents spoke about it and it would be unforgivable of us as legislators if we had another such case without doing anything to tackle this issue. This is hitting every door but I feel this is a practical solution.
“I am a mother myself. If I can bring in a piece of legislation that protects children and prevents them from having thousands of harmful images on their phones, I must be doing something right.”
Technology used on the Three mobile network, which provides internet filters to limit access to material that may not be suitable for children, showed it was possible to put such blocks in place, she added.
Ms Rabbitte has urged other TDs to support her Bill after getting the full backing from her own party’s frontbench at a meeting last week.
It is unlikely to carry incidental expenses and indirect cost implications, or a socalled ‘money message’ that needs Government support to pass through the Dail.
However, she said she is willing to work with other parties to see the issue progressed quickly.
Similar measures have been introduced in Israel under legislation first proposed three years ago.
“Children are being exposed to porn at a level we haven’t seen before.
“Research shows that exposure to such content during adolescence may increase incidences of sexual violence and can cause children and young people to develop unrealistic beliefs about sex and how relationships develop.
“This Bill tries to find the balance between creating a safer space for children online, while also maintaining the openness and free expression that the internet has created to date.”