Top ISPs Agree to Block Child Porn Sites

Three top Internet providers have agreed to block known child pornography hot spots, thanks to some strong-arm tactics from New York AG Andrew Cuomo, the New York Times reports. After an 8-month investigation, Cuomo threatened to come down on Time Warner, Verizon, and Sprint for fraud and deceptive business practices. The Internet giants acquiesced.

The agreement will affect 16 million subscribers, and Cuomo hopes to get other ISPs involved too. “You can’t help but look at this material and not be disturbed,” he said. “The ISPs’ point had been, ‘We’re not responsible, these are individuals communicating with individuals, we’re not responsible.’ Our point was that at some point, you do bear responsibility.” (More internet stories.)