The "safe" HTTP Preference
draft-nottingham-safe-hint-07

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Network Working Group                                      M. Nottingham
Internet-Draft                                          November 5, 2018
Intended status: Informational
Expires: May 9, 2019

                       The "safe" HTTP Preference
                     draft-nottingham-safe-hint-07

Abstract

   This specification defines a "safe" preference for HTTP requests that
   expresses a desire to avoid objectionable content, according to the
   definition of that term by the origin server.

Status of This Memo

   This Internet-Draft is submitted in full conformance with the
   provisions of BCP 78 and BCP 79.

   Internet-Drafts are working documents of the Internet Engineering
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   This Internet-Draft will expire on May 9, 2019.

Copyright Notice

   Copyright (c) 2018 IETF Trust and the persons identified as the
   document authors.  All rights reserved.

   This document is subject to BCP 78 and the IETF Trust's Legal
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Table of Contents

   1.  Introduction  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   2
   2.  The "safe" Preference . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   3
   3.  Implementation Status . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   4
   4.  Security Considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   5
   5.  IANA Considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   5
   6.  References  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   5
   Appendix A.  Acknowledgements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   7
   Appendix B.  Sending "safe" from Web Browsers . . . . . . . . . .   7
   Appendix C.  Supporting "safe" on Web Sites . . . . . . . . . . .   7
   Author's Address  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   8

1.  Introduction

   Many Web sites have a "safe" mode, to assist those who don't want to
   be exposed (or have their children exposed) to objectionable content.

   However, that goal is often difficult to achieve, because of the need
   to go to every Web site that might be used, navigate to the
   appropriate page (possibly creating an account along the way) to get
   a cookie [RFC6265] set in the browser, for each browser on every
   device used.

   A more manageable approach is for the browser to proactively indicate
   a preference for safe content.  A user agent that supports doing so
   (whether it be an individual browser, or through an Operating System
   HTTP library) need only be configured once to assure that the
   preference is advertised to a set of sites, or even all sites.

   This specification defines how to declare this desire in requests as
   a HTTP Preference [RFC7240].

   Note that this specification does not precisely define what "safe"
   is; rather, it is interpreted within the scope of each Web site that
   chooses to act upon this information.

   That said, the intent of "safe" is to allow end users (or those
   acting on their behalf) to express a desire to avoid content that is
   considered objectionable within the cultural context of that site;
   usually (but not always) content that is unsuitable for minors.  The
   "safe" preference ought not be used for other purposes.

   Furthermore, sending "safe" does not guarantee that the Web site will
   use it.  As such, its effect can be described as "best effort," but
   not to be relied upon.  In other words, sending the preference is no
   more reliable than going to each Web site and manually selecting a
   "safe" mode, but it is considerably easier.

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   It is also important to note that the "safe" preference is not a
   reliable indicator that the end user is a child; other users might
   have a desire for unobjectionable content, and some children might
   browse without the preference being set.