A January 1998 Family PC Magazine surveyed 750 of their readers and found that 68% of parents are concerned about children's access to pornography.

The increase in the number of pornographic web sites coupled with the increase in the number of children using the internet leads to a heated debate about safety issues.  One feature of this debate is the degree to which children have access to pornographic material online. Many people think that the answer lies in trying to create an Internet where children are not exposed to such material.  Yet, the methods for doing this are varied because, according to the National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC),  "defining a 'family friendly' environment . . . is like trying to pin Jell-O to a wall. Some object to sex and violence, while others would bleep expression of racial, ethnic or religious bigotry. Still others would ban any information about drugs, alcohol, or scientific experiments on animals. Different groups have different perspectives, but they all share a common motive; they want to control speech they don't like."