Online Child Sexual Abuse Content: The Development of a Comprehensive, Transferable International Internet Notice and Takedown System Dr. Weixiao Wei The research project was funded by the Nominet Trust and the research report was written by an independent researcher, Dr. Weixiao Wei. The opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed herein are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of the Nominet Trust, or any other organisations that participated the research project. I Table of Contents List of Acronyms ........................................................................................... I Acknowledgments ...................................................................................... III Executive Summary ....................................................................................... 1 Part 1: Introduction ...................................................................................... 4 1.1 Research Background ............................................................................................................. 4 1.2 Research Objectives ............................................................................................................... 4 1.3 Research Methodology........................................................................................................... 5 1.4 Outline of the Report.............................................................................................................. 6 1.5 Definition ................................................................................................................................ 6 Part 2: Legal Approaches relating to Child Sexual Abuse Content Worldwide 8 2.1 Introduction ............................................................................................................................ 8 2.2 International Law and Development ...................................................................................... 8 2.3 The European Perspective .................................................................................................... 11 2.4 Perspectives of Different Countries ..................................................................................... 21 2.4.1 European Countries: the UK, Spain, and Germany ....................................................... 22 2.4.1.1 The United Kingdom ............................................................................................... 22 2.4.1.2 Spain ....................................................................................................................... 29 2.4.1.3 Germany ................................................................................................................. 32 2.4.2 Countries in North and Latin America: the U.S., Brazil .................................................. 36 2.4.2.1 The U.S. ................................................................................................................... 36 2.4.2.2 Brazil ....................................................................................................................... 39 2.4.3 Asian-Pacific Countries: Australia, Taiwan, and Thailand .............................................. 43 2.4.3.1 Australia .................................................................................................................. 43 2.4.3.2 Taiwan .................................................................................................................... 47 2.4.3.3 Thailand .................................................................................................................. 50 2.5 Conclusion ............................................................................................................................ 53 II Part 3: The Existing Regulatory Regimes relating to Child Sexual Abuse Content ....................................................................................................... 56 3.1 Introduction .......................................................................................................................... 56 3.2 The Statutory Regulation Regime ......................................................................................... 57 3.2.1. The Strengths of Statutory Regulation ......................................................................... 57 3.2.1.1 Establishment of Special Law Enforcement Agencies ............................................ 57 3.2.1.2 Progress Made by Special Law Enforcement Agencies .......................................... 60 3.2.2 Inadequacy of the Law Enforcement Approaches ........................................................ 63 3.2.3 The Weaknesses of Statutory Regulation in Terms of the Swift Removal of Child Sexual Abuse Content at Source ........................................................................................................ 65 3.3 The Self-Regulation Regime.................................................................................................. 70 3.3.1 Self-Regulation in the Context of Child Sexual Abuse Content ..................................... 70 3.3.2 Internet Blocking ........................................................................................................... 72 3.3.2.1 Internet Blocking in the Context of Child Sexual Abuse Content ........................... 72 3.3.2.2 The Advantages of Blocking and Incentives behind Blocking................................. 74 3.3.2.3 Problems with Internet Blocking ............................................................................ 76 3.3.2.4 Summary ................................................................................................................. 78 3.3.3 The Notice and Takedown System ................................................................................ 79 3.3.3.1 The Notice and Takedown System in the Context of Child Sexual Abuse Content 79 3.3.3.2 The Strengths of the Notice and Takedown System .............................................. 80 3.3.3.3 The Drawbacks and Limitations of the Notice and Takedown System .................. 82 3.3.4 Internet Blocking vs. Notice and Takedown .................................................................. 84 3.4 Conclusion ............................................................................................................................ 85 Part 4: The Development of an International Notice and Takedown System88 4.1 Introduction .......................................................................................................................... 88 4.2 The Necessity and Possibility of Developing an International Notice and Takedown System .................................................................................................................................................... 88 4.3 Several Pertinent Issues in Relation to the Development of an International Notice and Takedown System ....................................................................................................................... 93 III 4.3.1 Different National Standards relating to Child Sexual Abuse Content .......................... 93 4.3.2 Differing Legal Procedures relating to Takedown of Child Sexual Abuse Content ........ 98 4.3.3 Impact on the Complex Network of Relationships on which International Co-operation Relies .................................................................................................................................... 101 4.3.4 Specific Impact on Law Enforcement Activity relating to Child Sexual Abuse Content related Offences ................................................................................................................... 103 4.3.5 Risks to an Organisation of Issuing International Takedown Notices ......................... 107 4.4 Conclusion .......................................................................................................................... 109 Part 5: Conclusion and Recommendations ................................................. 112 Bibliography .............................................................................................. 117 Appendix: Survey Questionnaire ............................................................... 122 IV List of Acronyms ACMA Australian Communications and Media Authority BKA German Federal Police (Bundeskriminalamt) CAIU Child Abuse Investigation Units CEOP Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre CEOS Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (the U.S. Department of Justice) CGA Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982 CIRCAMP COSPOL Internet Related Child Abusive Material Project CJA Criminal Justice Act of 1988 CJPOA Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 CP Child Pornography CSAC Child Sexual Abuse Content ECPAT End Child Prostitution, Child Pornography and Trafficking of Children for Sexual Purposes ESPs Electronic Service Providers FBI Federal Bureau of Investigation of the U.S. ICACs Internet Crimes against Children Task Forces of the U.S. ICAID Interpol Child Abuse Image Database ICCPR the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights ICE Immigration and Customs Enforcement (U.S. Department of Homeland Security) ICSE DB International Child Sexual Exploitation Image Database INHOPE International Association of Internet Hotlines ISP Internet Service Provider IWF Internet Watch Foundation LKA German State Police (Landeskriminalamt) LSSICE Spanish Information Society Services and Electronic Commerce Act