Search engines, such as Google and Yahoo!, may have to display links to information concerning how to browse the web safely if the recommendations of a new report are adopted.Conducted by clinical psychologist Dr Tanya Byron, the report was commissioned by the Labour government and focuses on the risks posed to children by the internet.
In addition to its proposals concerning search engines, the document suggests that sites which host videos uploaded by users, such as YouTube, should be made to screen their content more vigorously to protect youngsters.
Commenting on the issue, Google, which acquired YouTube in a $1.65 billion stock-for-stock transaction in November 2006, stated: "Google is deeply committed to protecting children on the internet and providing all of our users with a safe experience online."
It added that YouTube already provides users with a mechanism for flagging content which they believe to be inappropriate.
Dr Byron's 200-page report also recommends new measures forcing computer manufacturers to sell machines with Kite-marked parental control software, as well as making internet service providers give parents guidance on how to activate such software.
In its response to her suggestions, the government has revealed that it will provide full backing to the report.
However, Tony Neate, managing director of Get Safe Online, expressed his reservations about additional regulations, stating: "Laws should be a last resort," the Times reports.
He added: "I'm a great believer in self-regulation and if you can get the industry involved and work together to develop codes of practice, that's the best way forward."
