Canadian ISPs Look to Ban Porn Sites Without Going to Court

TORONTO — A proposal at the Canadian Telecom Summit could pave the way for Internet service providers to remove objectionable websites, including those that contain pornography, without having to engage in protracted legal engagements with site operators.

In a speech to the Canadian Telecom industry, which included managers from major ISPs like Rogers, Cogeco and Sympatico, Bernie Farber, CEO of the Canadian Jewish Congress, put his finger on the crux of the problem. ISPs that want to do something about objectionable material like hate speech and porn cannot remove sites without those sites first being declared illegal in a court of law, Farber told the crowd.

"This is a commercial business,” Farber said. “A newspaper doesn't have to accept every letter to the editor and an ISP doesn't have to accept everybody as a customer if they choose not to. It doesn't take a lot to discern what is pornographic and what is hate.”

While Farber considered his plan to be well received, he did concede that customers and website operators might object to the private regulation of content. For that, he offered a blunt response: “Let them sue you.”

Under the current system, ISPs post warnings regarding offensive content, but as Farber pointed out, such warnings are meaningless unless enforced.

According to Farber, ISPs need only develop a protocol for removing offensive content without court approval.

Copyright © 2025 Adnet Media. All Rights Reserved. XBIZ is a trademark of Adnet Media.
Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission is prohibited.

More News

Texas Resumes AV Lawsuit Against Aylo Following SCOTUS Decision

A district court judge in Texas has unfrozen the state’s $1.6 million lawsuit against Aylo for allegedly failing to comply with age verification requirements, Bloomberg Law is reporting.

JuicyAds Wins Trademark Infringement Case Against Fraudulent Domain

JuicyAds has won its World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) case against a website using a similar domain to impersonate the company's site and defraud customers.

Anissa Kate, Jordan Starr Top AEBN for Q2 of 2025

AEBN has published its top-selling stars for the second quarter of 2025, with Anissa Kate landing atop the leaderboard for straight theaters and Jordan Starr heading up the gay rankings.

AEBN Reveals Eva Maxim as Top Trans Star for Q2 of 2025

AEBN has published its top trans stars list for the second quarter of 2025, with Eva Maxim landing atop the leaderboard.

France Reinstates Age Verification Rule for EU Sites

France’s highest court, the Council of State, on Tuesday reinstated age verification rules for EU-based sites under the country’s Security and Regulation of the Digital Space (SREN) law, ruling in favor of the French government and against Hammy Media.

Whisper Fans Joins Pineapple Support as Supporter-Level Sponsor

Whisper Fans has joined the ranks of over 70 adult businesses and organizations committing funds and resources to Pineapple Support.

Utherverse Launches 'Red Light Center' Virtual World

Virtual reality and metaverse technology company Utherverse has launched its new virtual world, RedLightCenter.io.

European Commission Approves AV Guidelines, Unveils Prototype App

The European Commission on Monday released its final, approved guidelines for protecting minors online under the EU’s Digital Services Act (DSA) and made public a “white label” age verification app intended to help sites and platforms comply with age verification rules under the DSA.

Show More