Google and Microsoft band together to block child abuse image searches

Following months of mounting pressure, Google and Microsoft agreed to block internet searches for child abuse images.

13:11 18 November 2013

The days when internet surfers can access illegal images and videos of child abuse is about to end as Google and Microsoft have joined forces to make this impossible in the near future.

Google confirmed the development of a technology designed to tag illegal videos so all duplicate copies will be removed across the Internet. This change will be applicable across the world in more than 150 languages.

Google chairman Eric Schmidt said: "We've listened.

"We've fine-tuned Google Search to prevent links to child sexual abuse material from appearing in our results."

Meanwhile, Microsoft has confirmed that it will undertake the same reforms.

The Prime Minister has welcomed the move. He added that he will bring forward new legislation if the two search engines failed to deliver on what they have promised.

Experts, on the other hand, are not very enthusiastic about the announcement claiming that paedophiles do not often use search engines but peer-to-peer sharing.

Jim Gamble, former head of the Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre (Ceop) believe that this move is not the solution.

He said: "My fear is that it simply masks the symptoms... It is a positive step forward and the prime minister's involvement is a good thing but at the end of the day the fact remains that paedophiles don't search out their images on the internet.

"Nor does the internet make people become paedophiles - we need to get to the root cause of this."