WA man spared jail for child porn

A man who claimed a "computer error" prevented him from deleting child pornography has been spared an immediate jail term.

Adam James House, 32, pleaded guilty to possessing child exploitation material and was sentenced in the WA District Court on Tuesday to 18 months in prison, suspended for 18 months with supervision and program requirements.

During a search of his home, police found a computer and other devices containing dozens of sexual images and videos of children, aged between 10 and 14.

House told police he downloaded what he thought was adult pornography but later realised it was young girls dancing in lingerie.

He said he could not delete it due to a computer error, so he moved some images into a folder labelled "can't delete".

Judge Belinda Lonsdale accepted House was remorseful and felt shame for having an attraction to young girls.

"You have tried to curb your thoughts and desires ... (and) you do have a level of empathy for the children who are being exploited in the images," she said.