This is the first of four major consultations that Ofcom, as regulator of the new Online Safety Act, will publish as part of our work to establish the new regulations over the next 18 months.
It focuses on our proposals for how internet services that enable the sharing of user-generated content ('user-to-user services') and search services should approach their new duties relating to illegal content.
We cover:
- the causes and impacts of illegal harms;
- how services should assess and mitigate the risks of illegal harms;
- how services can identify illegal content; and
- our approach to enforcement.
Our proposals reflect research we have carried out over the last three years, as well as evidence gathered through extensive engagement with industry and other experts.
How to read this consultation
- Start with a summary of our proposals (PDF, 463.4 KB) and a summary of each chapter (PDF, 469.7 KB). These tell you everything you need to know about the proposals that affect you.
- If you want to get into more detail, the six volumes explain our proposals in full.
- In the annexes, we've published first drafts of our codes of practice, risk assessment guidance and other guidance.
Today we are publishing our first major policy Statement for the Online Safety regime.
This decision on the Illegal Harms Codes and guidance marks a major milestone, with online providers now being legally required to protect their users from illegal harm.
Ofcom published proposals about the steps providers should take to address illegal harms on their services shortly after passage of the Online Safety Act in October 2023. Since then, we have been consulting carefully and widely, listening to industry, charities and campaigners, parents and children, as well as expert bodies and law enforcement agencies. With today’s publication1, online providers must take action to start to comply with these new rules. The result will be a safer life online for people in the UK, especially children.
Providers now have a duty to assess the risk of illegal harms on their services, with a deadline of 16 March 2025. Subject to the Codes completing the Parliamentary process, from 17 March 2025, providers will need to take the safety measures set out in the Codes or use other effective measures to protect users from illegal content and activity. We are ready to take enforcement action if providers do not act promptly to address the risks on their services.
Our consultation closed on 23 February 2024. Gill Whitehead, Ofcom's Group Director for Online Safety, wrote the following note to respondents:
I wanted to share a short note to acknowledge receipt of your response to our consultation, but also to thank you sincerely for devoting time and consideration to your replies.
So much of Ofcom’s work is only made possible through the constructive and often very frank feedback from our stakeholders. In this instance, I know you faced a big task responding to such a critically important and complex consultation.
I’m particularly mindful of the contribution from the stakeholders with fewer resources at hand, such as smaller services and civil society groups. I do not for one moment take for granted how much time and effort this must have required. I can assure you that your submission, and all the contributions we’ve received, will be closely reviewed by our policy team as we seek to make our proposals even stronger.
Finally, a reminder of the next steps. We will carefully consider all the responses and evidence received, and then aim to publish our regulatory statement and conclusions around the end of this year. Services will then need to complete an illegal harms risk assessment, and we will submit our codes to the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, for laying before Parliament. Ofcom will issue these unless Parliament resolves not to approve them. We will, of course, update you as our work progresses.
Once again, thank you for helping us with this important work, and I look forward to working more with you in the years to come.
Gill Whitehead, Group Director for Online Safety
Related consultation
Illegal harms further consultation: Torture and animal cruel
Published: 2 August 2024
This page provides information about an addition to our earlier illegal harms consultation, to include animal cruelty and human torture content as types of content that platforms must tackle.
Main documents
Annexes
Responses
Contact information
Ofcom
Riverside House
2A Southwark Bridge Road
London SE1 9HA