The Internet is a truly global medium that offers not only access to information, and facilitates communication, but unfortunately also provides access to a variety of inappropriate material. Online child pornography has not only become a lucrative industry, but has also led to the sexual exploitation and abuse of children worldwide. A balancing of interests is required: the rights of privacy and freedom of expression on the one hand, and the global protection of children and their rights on the other. This article looks at the various statutory measures introduced in primarily the US and Canada, in an effort to regulate child pornography on the Internet to determine whether they offer any guidelines that could be applied in the South African context. Other possible options for coping with this problem are evaluated. It seems that a combination of tactics, including statutory measures, filtering technologies, and self-regulation should be implemented to fight the war on child pornography.
