eir victims' confidence. Federal law defines child pornography as photographs or video that depict people under the age of 18 involved in sexually explicit conduct- such as sexual intercourse, bestiality, masturbation and sadistic or masochistic abuse. Also prohibited are pictures involving children that include a "lascivious exhibition of the genitals or public area". The Government has introduced a number of measures to deal with pornography and obscene material, including the use on computers. The Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1998 increased the maximum sentence for possession of indecent photographs of children up to 5 years in prison, a $250.000 fine, or both. People convicted of distributing child pornography face up to 15 years in prison or/and a $300.000 fine. It also gave the police the power to arrest without warrant people suspected of obscenity and certain child pornography offences and greater powers to search and seize obscene material and child pornography. It also closed a potential legal loophole by extending the law to cover simulated child pornography manufactured and stored on computers. In Singapore authorities announced plans to establish a "neighborhood police post" on the Internet to monitor and receive complaints of criminal activity- including the distribution of child pornography. And in the United States there has been introduced a bill- vocally opposed by civil liberties organizations and computer-user groups- that would outlaw the electronic distribution of words and images that are "obscene, lewd, lascivious, filthy or indecent." However, Federal agencies lack the manpower to cope with all the criminal activity taking place online. Few local law enforcement officers are trained in computer technology. Moreover, Internet providers generally fail to educate their customers about ways to protect children from sexual predators. Few schools or libraries offer real safety training programs for children o...
