Child Pornography Bill Makes Privacy Experts Skittish

http://www.npr.org/2011/08/24/139875599/child-pornography-bill-makes-privacy-experts-skittish

The number of successful child pornography prosecutions has skyrocketed in recent years. Prosecutors are hardly at a disadvantage, says forensic technologist Jeff Fischbach.

"I don't find that there's a general lack of evidence in these cases," he says.

Prosecutors hire Fischbach to get the digital evidence in child porn cases, and he can't recall being stymied by deleted IP records. There is usually plenty of damning material already on a suspect's own hard drive. But he says the bill may be more useful in prosecuting other crimes like financial fraud.

"That's not what this bill at least claims to be aiming for," Fischbach says. "However, I have to tell you, as far as my read on that bill, it would certainly apply to those people."