1、CRS Legal Sidebar Prepared for Members and Committees of Congress Legal SidebarLegal Sidebari i The Fourth Amendment and the Internet: Legal Limits on Digital Searches for Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM) March 24, 2022 Various federal statutes criminalize the production, distribution, solicitatio
2、n, and possession of “child pornography,” defined in part as “any visual depiction” of sexually explicit conduct involving a minor. Over time, Congress has sought to augment the enforcement of these provisions and limit the dissemination of such material online in several ways. Among other things, f
3、ederal law requires covered interactive computer service (ICS) providers, such as companies like Google and Meta, to report “apparent violations” of the statutes that involve child pornography to the CyberTipline operated by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC), a private,
4、nonprofit organization that receives government funding. NCMEC refers to the material subject to reporting under the statute as Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM), a term it views as “most accurately reflecting what is depictedthe sexual abuse and exploitation of children.” NCMEC is required by fede
