UK children just as likely to have suffered harm on social media despite crackdown

Ofcom, the UK's online regulator, found that landmark online safety measures have failed to reduce harm to children on social media platforms, according to a review of the first nine months of enforcement under the Online Safety Act.

The proportion of children encountering unsafe content that left them frightened, confused or upset remained almost unchanged, Ofcom admitted in its assessment. The regulator also found little change in the severity of harm experienced by children who came across such material.

Campaigners responded sharply to the findings. They branded the lack of progress "staggering," according to The Guardian, which reported on the review.

The Online Safety Act introduced strict requirements on social media platforms including TikTok and Instagram. The review covered the initial nine months after these measures took effect. Despite these supposedly tough regulatory steps, the data showed no meaningful improvement in protecting young users from harmful content.

Ofcom's admission that the act has not yet delivered measurable reductions in child harm raises questions about the effectiveness of the regulatory framework introduced to protect minors online. The findings suggest that either the platforms have not yet complied fully with the new requirements, the requirements themselves are insufficient, or both.