Conservative lawmakers in Utah want to put a legally mandated default block on pornography on all phones and tablets sold in the state.
They have previously referred to porn as a “public health crisis.” However, the main focus of the would-be legislation would supposedly be to stop kids from accessing adult material online. Adults would be able to turn off the filter should they so wish.
“Utah has passed a critical, common sense solution to help protect vulnerable children from accessing harmful pornographic content on phones and tablets,” Dawn Hawkins, director of the National Center on Sexual Exploitation, said in a statement.
It remains to be seen what happens to the bill from here. Next up, it must be signed by Republican governor Spencer Cox. Cox has until March 25 to decide on the bill. It would then have to be supported by five other states enacting similar laws in order to go into effect. This is due to a provision for the benefit of manufacturers and retailers due to the challenge of making significant changes for a single state. Utah would be the first state to mandate filters on devices.
The American Civil Liberties Union of Utah argues that the bill is an example of overreach. “Parental filters already exist,” said attorney Jason Groth. “And every Utah parent can decide the level of access for their children.”
Apple and pornography
Apple hasn’t had to chime in on the subject of porn for quite some time. Generally, Apple is a pretty progressive and socially liberal company. But it has also got a history of being socially conservative when it comes to the topic of porn.
“Folks who want porn can buy an android,” Steve Jobs famously wrote to one customer. “You might care more about porn when you have kids,” Jobs continued when blogger Ryan Tate suggested that this stance looked to stand in the face of Apple’s revolutionary image. “It’s not about freedom, it’s about Apple trying to do the right thing for its users.”
Where would modern Apple come down on this issue? It almost certainly wouldn’t be in favor of it, although Apple continues to bar pornographic apps as Objectionable Content in its App Store rules. Apple determines such apps as ones that contain:
“Overtly sexual or pornographic material, defined by Webster’s Dictionary as ‘explicit descriptions or displays of sexual organs or activities intended to stimulate erotic rather than aesthetic or emotional feelings.'”
However, it includes no default blocks on Safari, although Apple does allow parents to turn on parental controls to block content on Safari. In 2018, the subject was broached with Tim Cook in an interview with Kara Swisher. Cook said that, while Apple continues to curate the App Store, “It doesn’t mean that you can’t use an iPhone to go to your browser and go to some porno site, if you want to do that.”
What do you think of the proposed Utah bill? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
Source: APNews
