Target Child Porn Sites Says Charity

Child protection could take international action to attack websites featuring indecent images of children.

They could all be wiped out if there was a co-ordinated international response, a charity has said.

The Internet Watch Foundation (IWF) has found evidence of around 3,000 sites offering the images.

The organisation said the total - which only includes English language sites - was a "concrete target" which could be tackled by international efforts.

IWF Chief Executive Peter Robbins said: "This year we have highlighted what we believe is a manageable number worldwide of such websites known to us.

"We hope that this revelation and the analysis and intelligence behind the numbers will lead to a better understanding of the issue and justify the need for more international partnerships to pool resources and thinking in order to find solutions.

"A co-ordinated global attack on these websites could get these horrific images removed from the web and those responsible investigated."

Hardly any sites are traced to the UK, with most based in the US and Russia.

The IWF called for a new international effort to disrupt and remove websites - particularly those which hop between servers and regions.

Meanwhille, NSPCC spokeswoman Zoe Hilton said: "The fact that a core of child sex abuse websites is continuing to operate underscores the urgent need for all internet service providers to block access to these appalling images.

"This would help stifle the supply chain to these sites which carry distressing pictures of often very young children being seriously sexually assaulted.

"The NSPCC is also calling for all computers to have safety software installed and programmed before being sold to the public to prevent access to this disturbing material."

(BMcC/JM)