Secure site for kids launches

A secure Web site aimed at protecting children from pornography launched Thursday.

Kidz.net was conceived in Australia six months ago and goes live in the UK today. A secure database with access to over 100,000 individually vetted sites on education, sports, gaming, etc, the site provides a walled garden of safe content for concerned parents for a monthly fee of £2.95. The site will be provided free to schools.

Managing director of Kidz.net Nicholas Street believes the site is impregnable. "It cant be hacked," he said. He is convinced that concerns about pornography are holding parents back from letting their children loose on the Internet. "Our research has show that parents are reluctant to let their children surf the Internet unsupervised," he said.

Street denies the site is offering a censored version of the Net. "A simple password lets you go from Kidznet onto the whole cloud of the Internet," he said. Libertarians have argued that it is not that easy for children to access porn but Street disagrees. "It is very easy to type in rude words and get graphic pictures up immediately," he said.