CDT, NetChoice, Others Urge Passage of Bill Funding CSAM Probes

Congress should approve legislation increasing funding for investigations and prosecutions of child sexual abuse material cases, consumer and tech groups wrote in a joint letter Tuesday. Center for Democracy and Technology, Chamber of Progress, Computer & Communications Industry Association, NetChoice, TechFreedom and TechNet joined groups in signing a letter to Congress supporting the Invest in Child Safety Act (see 2402160058). Introduced by Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and Reps. Anna Eshoo, D-Calif., and Brian Fitzpatrick, R-Pa., the bill would authorize $5 billion in mandatory funding for investigations and prosecution through 2030. The letter cites a 2023 report from Stop Child Predators, which claimed that in 2022 law enforcement had the “capacity and resources to investigate less than 1% of all reports of CSAM received by the CyberTipline.”