Deputy Labour leader Harriet Harman has accused the Daily Mail of running a "politically-motivated smear campaign" against her.
The newspaper has reported that a group she used to work for had links to paedophile rights campaigners.
The National Council for Civil Liberties forged "close links" in the 1970s and 1980s to the Paedophile Information Exchange, it claimed.
But Ms Harman dismissed the "horrific" and "untrue" claims.
"They have accused me of being an apologist for child sex abuse, of supporting a vile paedophile organisation, of having a relaxed attitude to paedophilia and of watering down child pornography laws," she said.
"These are horrific allegations and I strongly deny them all of them.
"The editor and proprietor of the Daily Mail are entitled to their political views and they are of course entitled to oppose what I stand for but they are not entitled to use their newspaper to smear me with innuendo because they disagree with me politically and hate my values.
"I sincerely hope people won't believe these smears... but given the seriousness and the aggression with which the Daily Mail are pursuing me, I feel that I need to put the facts in the public domain."
Labour leader Ed Miliband had earlier said his deputy was "somebody of huge decency and integrity - I don't set any store by these allegations".
From 1978 to 1982 Ms Harman was legal officer at the civil liberties group, which was the predecessor to campaign group Liberty.
The Daily Mail has questioned the politician, her MP husband Jack Dromey, and former health secretary Patricia Hewitt over their actions while officials at the National Council for Civil Liberties (NCCL) in the 1970s and 1980s.
Although the body granted "affiliate" status to the Paedophile Information Exchange (PIE), Ms Harman said the NCCL was "an organisation which anyone could apply to join and indeed any organisation could apply to be 'an affiliate' on payment of a fee".
There is no evidence to suggest that Ms Harman, Mr Dromey or Ms Hewitt personally supported the views of PIE.
A statement released by Mr Dromey said: "Sexual abuse of children is evil and I have always viewed paedophiles and any group associated with them as evil.
"During my time on the NCCL Executive, I was at the forefront of repeated public condemnations of PIE and their despicable views. Then, when I was elected chairman, I took them on.
"I personally chaired the NCCL conference that, on my recommendation, refused to back by a massive majority a loathsome motion from a leading light in PIE calling on NCCL to support the so-called 'rights' of paedophiles. Indeed, my stand was denounced in a leaflet distributed by PIE to the delegates to the Conference.
"Like many organisations in the 1970s, NCCL had been infiltrated but that was the moment the tide was turned. I closed the conference saying that we had to stand up for the rights of children not to be sexually abused and that adults guilty of abuse were the lowest of the low.
"I was then the first to argue that paedophiles could have no place in NCCL.
"As a lifelong opponent of evil men who abuse children, the accusations of the Daily Mail are untrue and beneath contempt."
Ms Hewitt, who stood down as an MP in 2010, has yet to comment on the story.
The newspaper has reported that a group she used to work for had links to paedophile rights campaigners.
The National Council for Civil Liberties forged "close links" in the 1970s and 1980s to the Paedophile Information Exchange, it claimed.
But Ms Harman dismissed the "horrific" and "untrue" claims.
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| Harriet Harman |
"They have accused me of being an apologist for child sex abuse, of supporting a vile paedophile organisation, of having a relaxed attitude to paedophilia and of watering down child pornography laws," she said.
"These are horrific allegations and I strongly deny them all of them.
"The editor and proprietor of the Daily Mail are entitled to their political views and they are of course entitled to oppose what I stand for but they are not entitled to use their newspaper to smear me with innuendo because they disagree with me politically and hate my values.
"I sincerely hope people won't believe these smears... but given the seriousness and the aggression with which the Daily Mail are pursuing me, I feel that I need to put the facts in the public domain."
Labour leader Ed Miliband had earlier said his deputy was "somebody of huge decency and integrity - I don't set any store by these allegations".
From 1978 to 1982 Ms Harman was legal officer at the civil liberties group, which was the predecessor to campaign group Liberty.
The Daily Mail has questioned the politician, her MP husband Jack Dromey, and former health secretary Patricia Hewitt over their actions while officials at the National Council for Civil Liberties (NCCL) in the 1970s and 1980s.
Although the body granted "affiliate" status to the Paedophile Information Exchange (PIE), Ms Harman said the NCCL was "an organisation which anyone could apply to join and indeed any organisation could apply to be 'an affiliate' on payment of a fee".
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| Jack Dromey |
A statement released by Mr Dromey said: "Sexual abuse of children is evil and I have always viewed paedophiles and any group associated with them as evil.
"During my time on the NCCL Executive, I was at the forefront of repeated public condemnations of PIE and their despicable views. Then, when I was elected chairman, I took them on.
"I personally chaired the NCCL conference that, on my recommendation, refused to back by a massive majority a loathsome motion from a leading light in PIE calling on NCCL to support the so-called 'rights' of paedophiles. Indeed, my stand was denounced in a leaflet distributed by PIE to the delegates to the Conference.
"Like many organisations in the 1970s, NCCL had been infiltrated but that was the moment the tide was turned. I closed the conference saying that we had to stand up for the rights of children not to be sexually abused and that adults guilty of abuse were the lowest of the low.
"I was then the first to argue that paedophiles could have no place in NCCL.
"As a lifelong opponent of evil men who abuse children, the accusations of the Daily Mail are untrue and beneath contempt."
Ms Hewitt, who stood down as an MP in 2010, has yet to comment on the story.
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