The Federal government continued its battle against child exploitation in December. On December 8, 2011 Bill C-22 came into force enacting provisions as set out in An Act respecting the mandatory reporting of Internet child pornography by person who provide an Internet service and related Regulations.
It applies to Internet service providers, including email providers and social networking sites. The new legislation requires those identified providers to do the following:
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"report tips they receive regarding Web sites where child pornography may be publicly available to the Canadian Centre for Child Protection; and
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notify police and safeguard evidence if they believe that a child pornography offence has been committed using an Internet service that they provide.
The Department of Justice's announcement and backgrounder provide further information.
DG Mack