Online child safety laws in Asia Pacific countries remain relatively "underdeveloped", according to a study by software giant Microsoft.
 
The study showed only five of the 14 countries it covered-- Australia, Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan--have enacted specific legislation against online child pornography.
 
The Philippines, India and Japan and Indonesia are currently considering online child safety laws, according to Microsoft.
 
Of these, the Philippines, the study noted, is enacting legislation that applies specifically to child pornography.
 
Microsoft is working with the International Center for Missing and Exploited Children (ICMEC), a non-governmental organisation, on child safety issues.
 
Both parties are working for legislation that makes it a crime to posses child pornography even for personal use and requires Internet service providers to report suspected offenders.
 
The study also stressed the need for greater consistency for such laws across countries.
 
While laws are generally applied at the local or national level, cybercrime is a threat transcends borders, said Julie Inman Grant, regional director for Internet safety and security for Microsoft.
 
"Because of the transnational nature of Internet-based crime, there is a need for greater global consistency in cybercrime laws," said Grant.