Most local authorities / bodies running library services in the UK block websites using third-party content filtering software. This software offers various categories of filtering (eg. "pornography", "gambling", "weapons" etc.) and a local authority/body selects which of these categories it would like to block. In some instances, they will also block specific URLs.
A
group of volunteers sent identical
requests to public authorities under the Freedom of Information Act (2000) and
the Freedom of Information Act (Scotland). Seven questions were asked to
ascertain the extent of public authorities' filtering decisions, and these
responses were tracked and made public via the website
http://www.whatdotheyknow.com.
This dataset represents a collation of
these responses with individual links to the WDTK response, and attempts to map
the extent of category-based web filtering on library public library PCs in the
UK.
Key information such as list of
categories blocked and name of filtering software have been included in the
database, although the original response hosted on WDTK should be referred to
in all circumstances to ensure accuracy.