Monika Sobiecki, partner in our Media and Information Law team, has been quoted in the ICLG article, Ofcom confirms new child safety regulations for online platforms. These regulations place stringent obligations on online platforms to reduce children’s exposure to harmful content.

Ofcom’s new codes will come into force on 25 July this year and will apply broadly across social media platforms, gaming services, search engines and other internet-based services. In terms of enforcement, Ofcom has been granted significant enforcement powers. Companies failing to comply with the regulations may face fines of up to GBP 18 million or 10% of global annual revenue while, in more severe cases, the regulator may seek court orders to block offending services from operating in the UK.

More regulation and more enforcement often results in more litigation with Monika stating:

Whilst there is no specific right to bring civil claims under the Online Safety Act and the codes are simply intended to create a safer online environment for children, the codes incidentally do create a source of fresh evidence of any failures by tech companies to comply with their duties of care, in the event that future litigation is necessary to vindicate any claims for harm caused to children.”

Read the full article in ICLG here.

Monika has also been quoted in ChannelLife UK, CMOtech UK, IT Brief UK, and Security Brief UK.