Communications Decency Act Law and Legal Definition
The Communications Decency Act of 1996 is an Act of Congress. The Act regulates pornographic material on the internet.
The Act affects the internet by regulating:
1. indecency; and
2. obscenity.
The provision of the Act is:
1. to promote the continued development of the internet and other interactive computer services and other interactive media;
2. to preserve the vibrant and competitive free market that presently exists for the internet and other interactive computer services, unfettered by Federal or State regulation;
3. to encourage the development of technologies which maximize user control over what information is received by individuals, families, and schools who use the internet and other interactive computer services;
4. to remove disincentives for the development and utilization of blocking and filtering technologies that empower parents to restrict their children's access to objectionable or inappropriate online material; and
5. to ensure vigorous enforcement of Federal criminal laws to deter and punish trafficking in obscenity, stalking, and harassment by means of computer.
