What is the P2P PATROL, why was it created, and how can it benefit my P2P experience?
How can I recognize illegal child pornography encountered on the Internet?
How can I remove an inadvertently downloaded child-pornography file?
How can I report suspected child pornography to law enforcement?
Peer-to-peer (P2P) technology is a powerful resource that gives people the ability to find virtually any kind of digital media file. P2P applications allow people to perform research, communicate, share ideas, and connect with each other across the globe.
Popular file-sharing programs are used by people of all ages. Responsible, active sharing is the key to a great P2P experience, and it is the responsibility of each individual to carefully choose which files they share.
For the peace of mind of parents and to protect children from being exposed to files that may contain offensive or potentially harmful content, leading P2P software programmers have developed features that are designed specifically to minimize this risk of exposure.
Understanding and properly using these features as well as monitoring children’s online activity are the suggested ways to ensure the best possible experience using P2P software programs. P2P PATROL recommends using only P2P software programs that display the P2P PATROL logo on their homepage.
In addition, an offering from SMARTguard Software, called Blockster, is now available and can provide parents with an additional level of protection in blocking and/or monitoring their children’s use of P2P software programs.
1. What is the P2P PATROL, why was it created, and how can it benefit my P2P experience?
P2P PATROL is a voluntary initiative of P2P software providers working to support law enforcement agencies and helping to protect children from exploitation and abuse. Each instance of child pornography literally depicts a child being violated, and therefore the goal of right-minded adults must be to eradicate it. With P2P PATROL, participating companies assist authorities in locating and helping current victims and preventing additional victimization.
The full name of P2P PATROL is Peer-To-Peer Parents And Teens React On Line.
It is important to note that this initiative is not a vigilante effort, and that seeking out criminally obscene content, even with the intention of helping to eliminate it, can itself expose one to violations of the law resulting in severe fines and imprisonment. Do not try to be an amateur detective; it will only get you into trouble.
The basic purpose of P2P PATROL, rather, is to provide responsible parents and young adults with the tools needed to support an appropriate response if and when you inadvertently encounter criminally obscene content.
Specifically P2P PATROL intends to help users be able to recognize, remove, and report individual instances of illegal child pornography that you may accidentally come across online.
Many files distributed by means of peer-to-peer software programs are created and made available by other users, and could contain adult or otherwise offensive or age-inappropriate content or images. The may even contain illegal child pornography or other criminally obscene content.
Peer-to-peer software providers cannot control what users create or make available, and are not responsible for the content of such files. It is up to each individual user to responsibly and legally decide which files to share and which to download.
P2P PATROL was created by Members of the Distributed Computing Industry Association (DCIA) and other industry leaders to provide tools for good-citizen P2P users to help rid file sharing of child pornography, which abusers of P2P software programs may attempt to distribute.
In addition to this education program for individuals, P2P PATROL also includes deterrence and enforcement programs for participating companies.
Participation in the P2P PATROL is voluntary for companies involved in the distributed computing industry. Participants must comply with a certification program and display the P2P PATROL logo on their homepage. Please feel free to revisit this website, P2Ppatrol.com, for updates as new information is made available and tools are added or upgraded.
2. How can I recognize illegal child pornography encountered on the Internet?
Laws vary by country, state, and province. It is advisable to check with local law enforcement authorities to understand the specifics of the applicable laws in your region.
A common denominator of most anti-child-pornography laws is that they exist to protect children from being exploited and abused. There are differing psychologies of perpetrators and various reasons for their acquiring and redistributing illegal videos and images, but all are immoral and dangerous. Child pornography is pernicious because it portrays children being violated through illegal sexual conduct.
The best approach to dealing with content identified through a P2P search that is believed to be illegal or inappropriate, is not to download that material at all. Downloading and/or possessing illegal adult material is a criminal offense in many jurisdictions. Contact a local law enforcement agency to report the incident.
If despite such precautions, an offensive file is downloaded, please follow these instructions:
To help in determining whether an image or video is an instance of illegal child pornography, rather than merely offensive or inappropriate material, P2P PATROL offers these general guidelines, which can be supplemented with information from local law enforcement.
If the image or video includes a prepubescent child with exposed genitalia, where the portrayal seems lewd and lascivious, intended to elicit a sexual response from the viewer, then in most jurisdictions this is in fact illegal child pornography.
P2P PATROL participants encourage P2P users to remove and report such files.
3. How can I remove an inadvertently downloaded child-pornography file?
Generally, for files in most shared folders of leading P2P file-sharing programs, by simply selecting the file, then right-clicking and choosing the “Delete” option, and then clicking “Yes” on the confirmation screen to send the file to the Recycle Bin, an offending file will be removed from the shared folder and no longer be able to be redistributed by that computer.
To be certain that the file has been permanently removed from the computer’s hard drive, also open the “Recycle Bin” folder, select the file, right-click on it and choose “Delete,” and then click “Yes” on the confirmation screen to permanently delete it.
There are also optional programs that can be acquired, typically for a modest license fee, to “wipe” files from computers, which is an even more permanent way to remove a file. Examples of these are “R-Wipe” and “Eraser.”
4. How can I report suspected child pornography to law enforcement?
It is generally illegal to transmit as well as to possess child pornography. Therefore, forwarding a file suspected of being child pornography is not advisable.
However, it is not illegal to transmit certain identifying information (other than the file itself) that can help law enforcement pursue subjects and perpetrators involved with child pornography.
The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) is law enforcement’s preferred clearinghouse for such leads. NCMEC operates the cybertipline, with federal agents working on-site alongside of NCMEC personnel to ensure a highly productive and efficient operation.
In order to qualify leads for processing and assigning to appropriate law enforcement agencies, P2P PATROL works in coordination with the Association of Sites Advocating Child Protection (ASACP), a private non-profit that combats website child pornography and operates the cphotline, using the resources of a high-technology Internet forensics firm. The reasons participating P2P PATROL companies use ASACP’s cphotline include helping to efficiently gather required information in a standardized format and monitoring their progress in reducing instances of child pornography.
ASACP’s cphotline has developed technologies for users of P2P PATROL compliant file-sharing software to easily and automatically submit required information to help law enforcement trace suspected child-pornography files:
In addition, for users of file-sharing software programs that are not yet participating in P2P PATROL, simply go to http://cphotline.org and follow the step-by-step directions on the web form there to report a suspected child-pornography file that has been encountered using a P2P software application.
ASACP will qualify all leads that it receives and provide NCMEC with the specific information required for law enforcement to investigate and prosecute a case.
Also, please contact your P2P file-sharing software program provider and urge it to join P2P PATROL.
Thank you for your support in protecting children and helping to rid file sharing of child pornography.
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