More and more these days, the charge of using child porn can fall on unsuspecting computer users who would never in a million years even think of downloading child porn. Computer viruses exist which can make your computer download volumes of the filth without you being aware of it–until the police come knocking at your door. They’ll believe the initial IP evidence and then stop thinking about it–there’s porn found, so you’re guilty.

More than a year ago, I wrote about the case of a 53-year-old for Massachusetts’ Department of Industrial Accidents who was doubly victimized: the incompetent IT staff who gave him a computer with anti-virus protection turned off. The unsuspecting worker used the computer, not knowing it was riddled with malware, some of it downloading child porn. The same inept IT workers saw the stuff being downloaded, jumped to conclusions, and pointed the finger at this guy, ruining his life. Despite the fact that a cursory review of evidence would have immediately shown that a virus was responsible, IT staff and prosecutors alike simply assumed, and that was that.

To add insult to injury, a cap on lawsuit awards has made it impossible for the man to find an attorney willing to sue for damages.

But this guy is not the only one falling prey to this kind of virus. Anyone who gets it can have the same thing happen, and they will find that it is very hard to prove one’s innocence. Police believe the victim is just using the “SODDI” defense: “Some Other Dude Did It.” Hiring experts to sift through the data and prove it was malware can be prohibitively expensive; the Massachusetts worker spent a quarter of a million dollars to do so, pretty much wiping them out financially–and for the rest of his life, he’ll be fighting off the stigma applied to him carelessly.

Lesson learned: anti-virus protection is even more important than you realize.