Sponsorship of the Internet Watch Foundation
The UK Cards Association is proud to be an Associate Member of the Internet Watch Foundation (IWF). Associate members of the IWF are companies that support the objectives of the IWF and the IWF Code of Practice but do not host online content, for example hardware manufactures or software companies. The IWF was established in 1996 by the UK internet industry to provide the UK internet ‘Hotline’ for the public and IT professionals to report potentially illegal online content within its remit and to be the ‘notice and take-down’ body for this content.
The IWF’s mission and vision are as follows.
The IWF use their expertise to work with partners to:
- Disrupt the availability of child sexual abuse content hosted anywhere in the world
- Protect children who are victims of sexual abuse from repeat victimisation and public identification
- Prevent internet users from accidentally stumbling across child sexual abuse content
- Delete criminally obscene adult, and non-photographic child sexual abuse content hosted in the UK.
The IWF will achieve their vision by:
Building on their work to make the internet free of child sexual abuse images worldwide
This means they will:
- Provide world renowned and trusted Hotline services
- Ensure that child sexual abuse content is taken down globally as soon as possible
- Promote their reporting facility to the public
- Develop innovative tactics and services to minimise the availability of child sexual abuse content globally
- Supply partners with an accurate and current URL list to enable blocking of child sexual abuse content
- Research, analyse and disseminate emerging trends data
- Expand the range and number of their partnerships
Make the UK internet free of criminally obscene adult content, and non-photographic child sexual abuse images
They will achieve this by:
- Providing an excellent and responsive national Hotline reporting service
- Working with partners to ensure potentially criminal content in the UK is taken down expeditiously
Being seen internationally as the best at what they do
They will:
- Enhance their worldwide reputation for effective self-regulation and technical excellence
- Maintain and develop their working relationships with existing and developing Hotlines
- Promote the use of their child sexual abuse URL List abroad
- Be instrumental in influencing policy developments by providing trusted evidence and best practice
- Develop our work with relevant international organisations
- Deliver accurate and comprehensive information about our work
Becoming a centre of excellence in our field
They will do this by:
- Staying ahead in a rapidly changing technical environment
- Providing a first-class, relevant and responsive service to our members
- Supporting law enforcement agencies, and other Hotlines in their work to disrupt the distribution of child sexual abuse images
- Linking up with child protection, social and academic institutions to promote our work
- Maintaining our ISO27001 accreditation
The IWF works in partnership with the online industry, law enforcement, government, the education sector, charities, international partners and the public to minimise the availability of this content, specifically, child sexual abuse content hosted anywhere in the world and criminally obscene and incitement to racial hatred content hosted in the UK. It is an independent self-regulatory body, funded by the EU and the wider online industry, including internet service providers, mobile operators and manufacturers, content service providers, filtering companies, search providers, trade associations and the financial sector as well as other organisations that give their support for corporate social responsibility reasons. It strives to create continued awareness of its role and purpose and aims to foster trust and reassurance in the internet for current and future users. The IWF’s self-regulatory partnership approach is widely recognised as a model of good practice in combating the abuse of technology for the dissemination of illegal content. More information on the IWF and its work can be found at: www.iwf.org.uk
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