No Porn On US McDonald's, Starbucks Wi-Fi

The NZ Herald is reporting that McDonald's and Starbucks in the United States are implementing filtering technology that blocks customers using Wi-Fi from accessing pornography sites.

The move follows a campaign from anti-pornography groups Enough is Enough and the National Center on Sexual Exploitation to demand the chains filter out pornography.

McDonald's said in a statement that Wi-Fi filtering has been activated in the majority of its nearly 14,000 restaurants nationwide. A spokesperson for Seattle-based Starbucks said it was implementing filtering once it could find a system that "also doesn't involuntarily block unintended content."

Enough is Enough President Donna Rice Hughes applauded the moves and says the organisation plans to push other businesses and venues to filter their Wi-Fi.

The National Center for Sexual Exploitation sald chains such as Chick-fil-A and Panera Bread already block porn on Wi-Fi.

• A McDonald's New Zealand question and answer sheet says the restaurant chain is "a family friendly environment" and it expects people to respect this by not viewing material that may be offensive to others.

"Through its specialised internet service vendor, McDonald's has a sophisticated content filtering technology which may block certain websites. McDonald's also has a fair use policy, whereby some restrictions on web content and/or download limits may be applicable to your internet session."

NZ Herald