INTERNET service providers (ISPs) here will not be asked to
pre-block pornographic websites as their British counterparts are
being urged to do.
On Sunday, news broke that the British government was looking
into the move, because of fears over the impact of sexual images on
children. British consumers, however, can opt in to receive
pornography, which is not illegal there.
In Singapore, the Media Development Authority of Singapore (MDA)
said it was not considering pre-blocking all pornographic sites or
'asking ISPs to provide the opt-in'. It said one reason is that it
is simply 'not possible to block every undesirable website'.
StarHub's vice-president for home solutions Ong Bee Lian added
that such a block was also no match for pornography lovers
'especially determined to access any particular website'.
Despite not supporting a blanket blocking, the MDA is not
complacent about the issue, said the content regulator's deputy
director for development policy Yuvarani Thangavelu.
'We take a serious view about Internet pornography', especially
child pornography, she said.
-- ST