The government needs to stop children using virtual private networks (VPNs) to bypass age checks on porn sites, the children's commissioner for England has said. Dame Rachel de Souza told BBC Newsnight it was "absolutely a loophole that needs closing" and called for age verification on VPNs.
And just how are they supposed to do that? Given every WFH civil servant and local government drone will be using one?
VPNs can disguise your location online - allowing you to use the internet as though you are in another country. It means that they can be used to bypass requirements of the Online Safety Act, which mandated platforms with certain adult content to start checking the age of users.
And as a result, lead to the closure of perfectly harmless sites like the Eastleigh online discussion forum and a hamster enthusiasts forum!
A government spokesperson said VPNs are legal tools for adults and there are no plans to ban them.
Leaving out the word ‘Yet’ I note…..
Dame Rachel told BBC Newsnight: "Of course, we need age verification on VPNs - it's absolutely a loophole that needs closing and that's one of my major recommendations." She wants ministers to explore requiring VPNs "to implement highly effective age assurances to stop underage users from accessing pornography."
Government needs to tell Rachel to get back in her fucking box!
1 comment:
How exactly will you force a VPN provider with no assets in the UK to comply (e.g. 4Chan v Ofcom). No doubt they'll want ISPs to block access to VPNs that aren't "certified" (probably including government mandated backdoor access).
Post a Comment