Internet Watch Foundation

 

IT Professionals in England and Wales

 

To promote awareness of Section 46 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 which came into force in May 2004 and provides clear guidelines around handling child abuse images for IT Professionals who are responsible for the security and integrity of their companys' networks.

 

Prior to this legislation any IT Professional, such as Systems Administrators, who might be responsible for monitoring company internet use and content would have been breaking the law by viewing any illegal images of children, whether deliberately or accidentally, during the course of their work.

 

The SOA 2003 changes this and the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) developed by ACPO and the CPS outlines this new defence and provides specific guidelines for those individuals who may be subject to exposure to such images, due to the nature of their work.

 

This legislation and accompanying MoU provides an opportunity for companies to implement clear and definitive policies around this type of illegal content and makes it easier to report any images found on desktops, laptops or mobile devices.

 

Any companies offering internet use to employees should be encouraged by this and ensure they understand the circumstances and conditions of the defence, in order to develop internal procedures accordingly and in line with UK law.

 

 

 

IWF research commissioned to establish current levels of awareness amongst target audience

Status: completed

 

Press release reviewing results of research

Status: completed

 

Editorial/news items in relevant national trade press

Status: ongoing, see 'Related Media' on this page for recent coverage

 

The wipeitout@iwf.org.uk email address has been set up so IT Professionals or other interested parties can email the IWF for more information.

 

Full page IWF advert in IT Week endorsed by the Home Office, the Association of Chief Police Officers, the Crown Prosecution Service and the ISP Association.

 

Concept and Design by Red Cell