Facebook Takes Prominent Role In Effort To Stop Child Porn
MENLO PARK (KCBS)— With 300 million photographs uploaded everyday, Facebook faces a daunting task of stopping pedophiles from sharing child pornography. As the world's biggest social network, they're also one of the leading forces in combating the spread of illegal photos by using some high-tech tools.
The company has assembled a team comprised of some former FBI agents to identify illegal images and ultimately to alert law enforcement. They're aided by a technology known as 'PhotoDNA', which stamps a digital fingerprint on an image.
According to the Microsoft developed company, while a photo can't be reconstructed from its DNA, if two images share similar DNA, you can tell if they are the same.
The photos are then forwarded to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.
KCBS Technology Analyst Larry Magid, who sits on the Center's board, said determining whether an image in fact is child porn, is easier said than done.
Facebook Takes Prominent Role in Effort to Stop the Spread of Child Porn
"It's not a simple question. It not only has to do with the age of the person, but the type of activity that they're engaged in. If they determine if it indeed is child pornography then they refer it to law enforcement," he said.
According to the San Jose Mercury News, the Silicon Valley Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, received more than 1,500 such tips last year.
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