UK cracks down on social media with tough online safety laws

Social media platforms in the UK now face significant fines if they fail to implement strict measures to combat illegal content, including fraud, terrorism, and child sexual abuse material, under new digital safety laws. The Online Safety Act, which applies to more than 100,000 services, including major platforms such as Facebook, Google, X, Reddit, and OnlyFans, requires companies to prevent such content from appearing or to remove it swiftly if it goes online.

Tech companies must put safeguards in place to tackle illegal harms such as encouraging suicide, extreme pornography, and drug sales. Those that fail to comply with the law could face fines of up to £18 million or 10% of their global revenue, which could amount to billions for corporations like Meta and Google. In extreme cases, services may even be taken down.

The UK watchdog Ofcom, responsible for enforcing the act, has published codes of conduct for platforms to follow to ensure compliance. The act outlines 130 priority offences that tech companies must address by strengthening their moderation systems.

The guidelines include default privacy protections for children to prevent strangers from accessing their profiles and locations, enhanced tools for women to block or mute harassers, dedicated reporting channels for tackling online fraud, and the use of hash-matching technology to prevent the sharing of illegal images, terrorist content, and revenge porn.

Ofcom has warned that many major platforms still need to introduce key safety measures to protect users from harmful content. It has now requested that online storage and file-sharing services disclose the steps they have taken to prevent child sexual abuse material from being distributed on their platforms. Companies that fail to respond or lack adequate protections will be investigated.

Legal experts view the new measures as a major shift in how illegal and harmful content is addressed, as they require tech companies to proactively identify and remove dangerous material rather than reacting after the fact.

The Online Safety Act has faced criticism from some US politicians, who argue that it could restrict free speech. However, the UK government has maintained that the legislation is focused on tackling criminal activity rather than limiting public debate. The government has also stated that the act will not be used as a bargaining tool in trade negotiations with the US, reinforcing that the UK’s online safety standards remain firm.