Congress Mandates Filter Awareness

20 November 1998

Congress inserted a requirement in the Omnibus Appropriation for ISPs to inform their new clients about the availability of filtering software. Under the amendment, however, ISPs do not have to provide such software to them free of charge.

Here's how it reads:

(d) Obligations of Interactive Computer Service. -- A provider of interactive computer service shall, at the time of entering an agreement with a customer for the provision of interactive computer service and in a manner deemed appropriate by the provider, notify such customer that parental control protections (such as computer hardware, software, or filtering services) are commercially available that may assist the customer in limiting access to material that is harmful to minors. Such notice shall identify, or provide the customer with access to information identifying, current providers of such protections.