REGULATION"S OF CHILD PORNOGRAPHY ON THE INTERNET .

             The use of the Internet facilitates their purposes but this report will deal with the regulation of child pornography on the Internet under various legislation. Child pornography is a serious concern for parents and law authorities and the Internet is unfortunately used by paedophiles to traffic in these. As you will see below there have been recent operations which were followed by successful prosecutions in the UK and the US. .

             RELEVANT UK LEGISLATION DEALING WITH CHILD PORNOGRAPHY .

             Protection of Children Act 1978 .

             The offence in section 1 of the 1978 states: .

             "It is an offence for a person - .

             (a) to take, or permit to be taken or to make, any indecent photographs or pseudo-photographs of a child; .

             (b) to distribute or show such indecent photographs or pseudo-photographs; or ." .

             The section 7(7) of the 1978 Act gives a legal definition to the pseudo-photographs by stating: .

             "(7) "Pseudo-photograph" means an image, whether made by computer-graphics or otherwise howsoever, which appears to be a photograph.".

             The meaning of photograph and the introduction of "Pseudo-Photographs" .

             The definition of "photograph" given in section 7(4) of the Protection of Children Act 1978 did not include photographs in electronic data format and it was criticised by the Crown Prosecution Service in their evidence to the Home Affairs Committee. The response came in the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994. Section 84(4) of the 1994 Act inserted a subsection (b) to section 7(4) of the 1978:.

             "(b) data stored on a computer disc or by other electronic means which is capable of conversion into a photograph." .

             The main purpose of section 84 was to deal with the so called "pseudo-photographs" of children. Pseudo-photographs are technically photographs but they are created by computer software such as MS Paintbrush or Picture Publisher by using more than one picture.