The New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo announced Tuesday that three Internet service providers, including Verizon, Sprint, and Time Warner Cable have agreed to block Internet forums and websites nationwide, where thousands of child-porn images have been posted.

According to the NY Attorney General, the Internet Service Providers have agreed to contribute more than $1.1 million to help the state combat the spread of child pornography. These companies have also assented to block access to newsgroups that traffic such images on one of the oldest online outposts, known as Usenet, as well as sites that host child pornography. The agreements between ISPs and NY State will affect customers not just in New York but throughout the country.

In a statement, Cuomo said, “The pervasiveness of child pornography on the Internet is horrific and it needs to be stopped. We are attacking this problem by working with Internet Service Providers to ensure they do not play host to this immoral business."

The NY Attorney General told that the undercover investigations uncovered that the major source of online child pornography is "Newsgroups," an online service not associated with websites. The users can use Newsgroups as online bulletin boards where they can upload and download illicit files. The investigations found 88 different Newsgroups that contained a total of 11,390 sexually lewd photos of prepubescent children.

ISPs initially ignored the investigators' complaints, but when attorney general's office threatened charges of fraud and deceptive business practices, the companies agreed to cooperate.