Last January 30, the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) issued a memorandum that would require ISPs and telecommunication companies to install monitoring software to filter out pornography sites and content. According to Samuel Sabile, networks and facilities division officer-in-charge, it will be enforced within the month after publication requirements have been fulfilled. Take a minute to let that sink in. Yep, no more cyber porn in the Philippines.
The Philippines is actually a major contributor to webcam child sex tourism (WCST) because of our proficiency in English and the ease of internet accessibility in the country. The NTC is in the process of upgrading from IPV4 to IPV6 to enable authorities to monitor internet activity on a per-household basis. Currently, monitoring would only turn up the IP address of the barangay, municipality or city where the user was accessing cyber porn.
While IP address monitoring at a per-household basis would certainly help authorities nab sex offenders and the production of WCST content, I’m not quite sure how blocking access to porn would help. What do you guys think? Is this a step in the right direction for our country? A better question is how our ISPs will comply and how it will affect our current browsing habits.
