The Bush administration is planning to make internet service providers help in the building of a centralised system to enable broad monitoring of the web.

According to the New York Times, a final version of a report being prepared by the President's Critical Infrastructure Protection Board (CIPB) is set for release early next year.

It is intended to generate public and private co-operation to regulate and defend vital computer networks from viruses, hackers and terrorist attacks.

Tiffany Olson, deputy chief of staff at the CIPB, told the New York Times: "We don't have anybody that is able to look at the entire picture. When something is happening, we don't know until it's too late."

But critics fear that the plan would give the government the potential for real-time monitoring of individuals.