(3) Adopting Standards on Filtering Software and Creating a Clean Internet to Protect Young Internet Users
Providing healthy online services for young people has been a matter of great concern in the effort to promote Internet usage. In this regard, the ISC has done the following:
First, it has adopted the Standard on Evaluating Wholesome Internet Content to guide Internet content providers. This standard calls on websites not to provide information provoking juvenile delinquency, such as detailed descriptions of crime and violence. They should not offer content that may give young people an erroneous outlook on life, such as disrespect of other people's right to life, or instigate self-injury or suicide. They should not incite young people to violate social ethics, such as showing disrespect to teachers and elders, bullying fellows and defying the principles of honesty and credibility. They should not provide information that may lure young people into bad habits, such as information about the advantages of smoking and drinking and the feeling from using drugs. They should not give young people a wrong concept of sex by advocating or inciting teenage sex, describing or displaying illegitimate sexual behaviors, etc. They should not provide information that may cause young people to take part in gambling, such as descriptions of gambling processes and information that may arouse young people’s desire to gamble. We use these criteria to evaluate websites and website sections. We also have recommended the first 44 up-to-standard websites to young Internet users, a move that has helped promote the dissemination of wholesome information.
Second, the ISC has introduced preventative measures at the customer end. It has formulated the Technical Standard on Internet Content Filtering Software for PC Terminals and the Testing Procedure for Internet Content Filtering Software for PC Terminals in collaboration with the China Communications Standards Association to guide the research and development of content control software. To our delight, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the government agency in charge of the Internet industry, has purchased through procurement the copyright of software products that have fulfilled the ISC standard and procedure and made them freely downloadable to young students. With these software products, the students can surf the Internet without being exposed to harmful information such as pornography and information on gambling and drug use. The educational and recreational online environment will relieve parents of their concerns to a large extent, thereby making the Internet more popular among young people.
(4) Enhancing Web Accessibility to Disabled Persons
The ISC began to host the China Information Accessibility Forum together with other organizations back in 2004. To date, five forums have been organized, with their themes ranging from "narrowing the digital divide to let everyone share the digital civilization" and "promoting innovation in science and technology to increase information accessibility" to "information accessibility and a harmonious future." The forums aim to celebrate the concept of information accessibility, encourage companies to give full play to their capacity for making innovation, explore approaches to developing the information accessibility industry, provide the government with information it can take as reference when making policies and standards, and create a platform for the disabled to engage in online learning and communication.
The ISC, the China Communications Standards Association, the China Disabled Persons' Federation (CDPF) and the Beijing Organizing Committee for the Games of the 29th Olympiad (BOCOG) launched an initiative in March 2008, calling for building disability-friendly websites for the Beijing Olympics and Paralympics. They jointly devised and released the Information Accessibility Standardization System, providing uniform technical guidelines for websites to enhance accessibility. The document puts forward specific suggestions on making websites accessible to visually impaired and elderly Internet users. With these suggestions, the initiative aims to give easy Internet access to the 12.33 million visually impaired people in China and pave the way for broader information accessibility programs.