In November 2006, Canada’s largest ISPs launched Project Cleanfeed Canada in partnership with Cybertip.ca, the nation’s child sexual exploitation tipline. The project,
modeled after a similar initiative in the United Kingdom, is intended to protect ISP customers ‘‘from inadvertently visiting foreign Web sites that contain images of children
being sexually abused and that are beyond the jurisdiction of Canadian legal authorities.’’ 43 Acting on complaints from Canadians about images found online, Cybertip.ca
analysts assess the reported information and forward potentially illegal material to the
appropriate foreign jurisdiction. If a URL is approved for blocking by two analysts, it
may be added to the Cleanfeed distribution list. Each of the participating ISPs voluntarily blocks this list without knowledge of the sites it contains, precluding ISP involvement in the evaluation of URLs. Blocked sites fail to load, but attempts to access them
are not monitored and users are not tracked. 44
Since Project Cleanfeed Canada is a voluntary program, the blocking mechanism is
up to the discretion of the ISPs. Sasktel, Bell Canada, and Telus all claim to block only
specific URLs, not IP addresses, in an attempt to avoid overblocking. 45 Beside the significant public outcry that would most likely occur, overblocking itself may be illegal
under the Telecommunications Act mentioned previously.
Under Section 163 of the Canadian Criminal Code, accessing child pornography—as
well as making it accessible—is unlawful. 46 Therefore, the filtering of such content
does not infringe on rights of access or speech afforded by the Canadian Charter of
Rights and Freedoms within Canada’s constitution. Moreover, because ISP participation in Project Cleanfeed is voluntary, the blocking of sites through the project cannot
be said to be state sponsored. However, the project remains controversial for other reasons. First, Project Cleanfeed has not yet sought or received authorization from the
CRTC. Second, the blacklist maintained by Cybertip.ca remains secret, as publishing a
‘‘directory’’ of child pornography would itself be illegal. This lack of transparency inevitably generates distrust of the list and the process by which it is compiled. Third, the
procedure for appealing the blocking of a site may have implications for anonymity. 47
A content owner or ISP customer may complain to the ISP or directly to Cybertip.ca,
which will reassess the site and, if necessary, obtain an independent and binding judgment from the National Child Exploitation Coordination Centre. It is unclear whether
this process might expose the complainant’s identity and create a potential for abuse
of that individual’s rights by the ISP or perhaps even by authorities.
Canada’s response to online obscenity and its voluntary filtering initiative are minimal in contrast to the more vigorous regulatory efforts of the United States.
Regulation of Online Gambling
In 2006, the United States House of Representatives passed legislation designed to limit
online gambling by prohibiting the transfer of funds to gambling sites. The Unlawful
United States and Canada Overview
375
modeled after a similar initiative in the United Kingdom, is intended to protect ISP customers ‘‘from inadvertently visiting foreign Web sites that contain images of children
being sexually abused and that are beyond the jurisdiction of Canadian legal authorities.’’ 43 Acting on complaints from Canadians about images found online, Cybertip.ca
analysts assess the reported information and forward potentially illegal material to the
appropriate foreign jurisdiction. If a URL is approved for blocking by two analysts, it
may be added to the Cleanfeed distribution list. Each of the participating ISPs voluntarily blocks this list without knowledge of the sites it contains, precluding ISP involvement in the evaluation of URLs. Blocked sites fail to load, but attempts to access them
are not monitored and users are not tracked. 44
Since Project Cleanfeed Canada is a voluntary program, the blocking mechanism is
up to the discretion of the ISPs. Sasktel, Bell Canada, and Telus all claim to block only
specific URLs, not IP addresses, in an attempt to avoid overblocking. 45 Beside the significant public outcry that would most likely occur, overblocking itself may be illegal
under the Telecommunications Act mentioned previously.
Under Section 163 of the Canadian Criminal Code, accessing child pornography—as
well as making it accessible—is unlawful. 46 Therefore, the filtering of such content
does not infringe on rights of access or speech afforded by the Canadian Charter of
Rights and Freedoms within Canada’s constitution. Moreover, because ISP participation in Project Cleanfeed is voluntary, the blocking of sites through the project cannot
be said to be state sponsored. However, the project remains controversial for other reasons. First, Project Cleanfeed has not yet sought or received authorization from the
CRTC. Second, the blacklist maintained by Cybertip.ca remains secret, as publishing a
‘‘directory’’ of child pornography would itself be illegal. This lack of transparency inevitably generates distrust of the list and the process by which it is compiled. Third, the
procedure for appealing the blocking of a site may have implications for anonymity. 47
A content owner or ISP customer may complain to the ISP or directly to Cybertip.ca,
which will reassess the site and, if necessary, obtain an independent and binding judgment from the National Child Exploitation Coordination Centre. It is unclear whether
this process might expose the complainant’s identity and create a potential for abuse
of that individual’s rights by the ISP or perhaps even by authorities.
Canada’s response to online obscenity and its voluntary filtering initiative are minimal in contrast to the more vigorous regulatory efforts of the United States.
Regulation of Online Gambling
In 2006, the United States House of Representatives passed legislation designed to limit
online gambling by prohibiting the transfer of funds to gambling sites. The Unlawful
United States and Canada Overview
375