Legal Aspects

The childKEY revolution
Today, thanks to the childKEY technology and the advent of Differentiated Surfing, the Providers of Service are in a position of knowing if the person requesting a web page is a minor or adult.
Such information forces the Providers and Receivers of Service (Search engines, Web sites etc.) to adapt their behaviour to the criteria of responsibilities. This may be done through the use of childKEY metadata for the sites and Snasa childKEY (software which detects the presence of minors) both licensed free of charge by the Onlus safety Wide World web Foundation.
We believe that nowadays already exist, thanks to such information, the premises for applying the penal code for violating art. 40, 528 and 600 third and fourth.

Responsabilities
The European Union and other Countries legislations have already disciplined various information crimes to combat the spreading on Internet of illegal information, pornography (especially child pornography), racial slurs and information which incite violence.
The authors or suppliers of such contents may be called to answer in a court of law. Even the providers of service may be involved: being able to prove illegal access to a minor, in fact, there are proven details of uncontrolled access and therefore sufficient grounds for administrative or legal prosecutions.
According to the Italian Penal Code, the person or persons who displays on a public site, acquires, detains or places in circulation writings, drawings, images or other obscene acts of any kind is legally prosecutable (art. 528 p.c., whereby are considered obscene, acts or objects which, according to common sentiment, offend against decency.
The criminal acts may be committed also in an omissible manner, meaning doing nothing to avoid acts that can be construed as illegal actions.

In addition, as far as child pornography field is concerned, the Decision issued by the counsel of European Union on May 29 2000, provides that the member States examine appropriate steps apt at eliminating child pornography and steps to solicit Internet’s service providers to:

 

• Eliminate from circulation all child pornography material of which they have been informed or come to know and widespread through such service
• Save all information regarding such traffic
• Install control systems to combat production, possession and diffusion of child pornography material
• Offer consultancy to the Authorities about child pornography of which they have been informed or come to know and diffused through their system

 

Adhering to the Convention on children rights, the Italian legislators has provided, through appropriate amendment of the penal code (law 269/98), norms regulating child protection against any form of exploitation and sexual violence to safeguard their physical, psychological, spiritual, moral and social development.