The Children's Internet Protection Act
The Children's Internet Protection Act (CIPA) was signed into law on December 21, 2000. it was created to attempt to keep children from accessing inappropriate material on the internet. Any School or Library which receives e-rate funding for their internet is required to comply with the restrictions set forth by CIPA. Therefore this is a very important topic for anyone interested in the use of Technology or with the administration of techonology in a school or Library to have a firm understanding of.
CIPA requires that all schools put in place a technology protection measure on all devices that access to the internet to Block or Filter access to material that is :
- obscene
- child pornography
- harmful to minors
Furthermore, Schools and Libraries must have in place policies addressing the following key areas:
- Access by minors to inappropriate matter on the Internet and World Wide Web -- this is ussually addressed by the use of Filtering software on the individual Computers or by a districtwide filter installed at the internet edge of the School Network.
- The safety and security of minors when using electronic mail, chat rooms, and other forms of direct electronic communications -- this is especially importnat when viewed in conjunction with number four. Many time students are not aware of who they are actually speaking with or what they are actually telling the "stranger" on the other end of the converstaion.
- Unauthorized access, including so-called “hacking” and other unlawful activities by minors online -- many minors do not understand the severity of unauthorized access to systems on the internet
- Unauthorized disclosure, use, and dissemination of personal information regarding minors -- see number two.
- Measures designed to restrict minors’ access to materials harmful to minors -- addressed in the same manor as number one.
Determining what material is deemed harmful to minors is made by the school or school board (or other authority) responsible for certifying they are compliant with CIPA. no agency or instrument of teh United states government may review, evaluate, or determine the criteria for selecting such sites.
Most Schools, however, agree on teh filtering of certain areas as being harmful to minors ...
- Adult/Sexually explicit — material that is sexually oriented, adult products and services, explicit cartoons and animation
- Criminal Skills — information about performing illegal acts
- Hacking — information about questionable or illegal use of equipment and/or software
- Drugs, Alcohol and Tobacco — recipes, encouragement or instructions in the use of alcohol, tobacco, illegal drugs, or other substances that are illegal to minors
- Hate Speech — advocating or inciting degradation or attack of specified populations or institutions; promoting political or social agenda that is supremacist in nature, is militant or extremist
- Violence — portraying, describing, or advocating physical assault against humans, animals, or institutions; excessive use of profanity
- Weapons — online purchasing or ordering information; information detailing the use of guns, weapons, ammunition or poisonous substances
The Blocking of these categories are neither required nor limiting. Schools have the ability to block or unblock material as long as they can proove that it is harmful/not harmful for children to view.
Cipa does not just apply to the viewing of material by minors within the bounds of the institution, it also applies to adults. Adults are never permitted to use equipment to access material that is deemed obscene or to be child pornography. A person authorized by the responsible authority may disable the filter concerned to enable access for bona fide research or other lawful purposes by an adult.
While filtering software does improperly block access to information which is not objectionial or violations of CIPA, most schools have a system in place to allow for the unblocking of such erronsously blocked material.
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