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Wednesday, September 05, 2007
Internet shops tapped to stop child porn, cyber sex
By Rimaliza Opiña
BAGUIO CITY -- It is not just business for Internet shop owners. Profit and patronage go with protecting children from exploitation in the form of prostitution, trafficking, and pornography, said Baguio City Councilor Richard Cariño.
Cariño said although the worldwide web has a lot to offer, there are also things to watch out for like the trade of illegal drugs, weapons, pornographic materials, credit card hacking, as well as a modern type of prostitution -- cyber sex.
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"The Internet carries risks, especially to children, like exposure to extreme violence and harmful materials," Cariño said, adding that to avoid abuse, those engaged in this form of business must be mandated to post within their establishments browsing rules and cyber ethics.
On top of the other requirements needed to operate an Internet shop, the councilor proposed that the creation of cubicles and rooms in computer shops be prohibited.
He said all establishments should maintain open cubicles for each computer unit. This would allow employees to view the things their customers upload or download from the net.
Cariño said cyber ethics must be posted on every cubicle so that children who avail of Internet services could see them.
Included in the cyber ethics is a reminder for children not to talk and meet with people whom they have met on cyber space, not to give personal and other details like credit card, pictures and bank account number, and to report to the service provider or the network administrator the exhibition of pornographic materials and use of foul language.
In regulating access to pornographic sites, the proposal also mandates computer shop owners to install a hardware that controls access to these sites.
Employees of a computer shop who happen to witness acts that relate to child pornography, hacking, identity theft, fraud, and cyber sex are required to report these to the police. Smoking and consumption of alcohol in these establishments should also be prohibited.
According to Cariño, computer shops would be required to keep, for at least six months, a list of customers.
Operators of these businesses, upon renewal or new permit applications, would be made to sign an undertaking assuring their compliance with provisions in the ordinance once it is approved. (Sun.Star Baguio/Sunnex)
For more Philippine news, visit Sun.Star Bacolod. (September 5, 2007 issue)
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