The Child Online Protection Act (COPA) is a law in the United States of America which specified some measures for the expressed purpose of protecting children from encountering obscene material on the internet. All commercial distributors of "material harmful to minors" were to protect their sites from access by minors. "Material harmful to minors" was defined as materials that by "contemporary community standards" are judged to appeal to the "prurient interest" and that show sexual acts or nudity (including female breasts). Several states have since passed similar laws.

An injunction blocking the federal government from enforcing COPA was obtained in 1998. In 1999, the 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the injunction and struck down the law, ruling that it was too broad in using "community standards" as part of the definition of harmful materials. In May 2002, the Supreme Court reviewed this ruling, found the given reason insufficient and returned the case to the Circuit Court. In March 2003, the 3rd Circuit Court again struck down the law as unconstitutional, this time arguing that it would hinder protected speech among adults. The administration appealed, and in October 2003 the Supreme Court agreed to review the case again

Because it limits only commercial speach and only for US providers, the effect on the availability of the regulated material to minors if the law is enforced is unlikely to be significant.

COPA is sometimes confused with COPPA, the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act, which remains in force and limits the ability of sites to offer services to those aged twelve and under without explicit parental consent.

See also