Can child porn really find its way to your laptop or computer with out your knowledge? Even though police and prosecutors are skeptical, alleged pedophiles usually claim that a computer virus deposited illegal photos or video on their difficult drives.

A recent Associated Press investigation, nevertheless, has revealed a number of instances where laptop or computer viruses have, in reality, been developed to place pornographic images of youngsters on the computers of innocent victims. For those affected, proving their innocence expenses thousands of dollars — sometimes hundreds of thousands.

According to designers of personal computer security software, approximately 20 million computers worldwide are infected with viruses that could give somebody else complete control. Pedophiles can take benefit of these hacked computers to store and access child porn remotely, protecting themselves in case of an investigation. Hackers can also take control of a computer’s internet access, forcing the pc to surf to sites containing child pornography without the owner’s understanding.

In 2007, a former Massachusetts workers’ compensation investigator was charged with possession of child pornography when his employer discovered child porn on the challenging drive of his state-issued computer.  An inspection later revealed that the pc was badly infected it had been programmed to pay a visit to over 2000 child porn sites per hour, all without having his understanding.

Soon after virtually a year, the case against him was dropped, but not just before he lost his job and his buddies. He even had his vehicle vandalized and experienced death threats.

While law enforcement officials admit that a virus can often place child porn on a laptop or computer, the ubiquity of the excuse leads them to question it in every instance. The director of the Cyberlaw Clinic at Harvard’s Beckman Center for Net &amp Society compares it to the “dog ate my homework” excuse utilized by schoolchildren everywhere.  The difficulty, he says, is that often the dog truly did eat the homework.

What can you do to safeguard yourself? Keeping your computer’s firewall or antivirus program up to date will support, as will refraining from opening e-mail attachments from unknown sources. Also, if you think that you have been charged wrongly for possession of child pornography, contact an experienced criminal defense attorney right away.