Updates

Child Online Protection

Efforts to protect children online increase

UK regulator Ofcom is concerned with what it sees as alarming numbers of children pretending to be 18 or over on social media and has warned social media companies of sanctions if they fail to take effective steps to address the issue.

The country’s new online safety legislation (Online Safety Act) that requires social media and other online platforms to better enforce age verification is coming into force in 2025.

Now going further, the UK government is also considering additional measures, including legislation to ban social media for the under-16s, a move similar to Australia’s plans to ban the age group from social media.

Various other measures are on the rise in other countries, not only by central governments but often also by local authorities. Earlier this year in the US, the Los Angeles school district board of education voted to ban smartphones for its 429,000 students to protect them from distractions that undermine learning and hurt mental health.

We continue to monitor these developments and will return here with further updates.

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Related Updates

UK regulator Ofcom is concerned with what it sees as alarming numbers of children pretending to be 18 or over on social media and has warned social media companies of sanctions if they fail to take effective steps to address the issue.

The country’s new online safety legislation (Online Safety Act) that requires social media and other online platforms to better enforce age verification is coming into force in 2025.

Now going further, the UK government is also considering additional measures, including legislation to ban social media for the under-16s, a move similar to Australia’s plans to ban the age group from social media.

Various other measures are on the rise in other countries, not only by central governments but often also by local authorities. Earlier this year in the US, the Los Angeles school district board of education voted to ban smartphones for its 429,000 students to protect them from distractions that undermine learning and hurt mental health.