The online safety bill is set to be enforced this year and it places an obligation on technology companies to ensure the safety of children from harmful content. Nevertheless, advocates and members of the House of Lords are urging for stricter measures in the legislation’s clauses concerning pornography. Below is a summary of the act’s objectives concerning adult material.
What are the rules now?
The UK’s legal approach to pornography has been criticized by MPs for being a “loose patchwork” of more than a dozen laws. The Obscene Publications Act criminalizes the publication of work that is considered “obscene,” while the Criminal Justice and Immigration Act makes it illegal to possess an “extreme” pornographic image. Possessing, distributing, or making indecent images of a child is also an offense.
The British Board of Film Classification is the primary regulator of legal pornography offline, assigning age ratings such as R18 or 18 for the most extreme yet legal content. However, it has no jurisdiction over online content.
Current Problem
The online safety bill does not require the use of specific technologies for age verification, but Ofcom will provide guidelines on age assurance, which refers to the process of verifying the age of individuals online. Age verification, which involves the strictest measures such as providing official ID, is an option.
One solution is to use age verification companies that check a user’s age through various methods, such as official ID or bank statements, and then inform the porn provider that the individual wishing to access their service is over 18 years old while maintaining anonymity.
In the autumn, Ofcom plans to launch a consultation on safeguarding children from pornographic content, including on platforms that are user-generated like OnlyFans.
How does the online safety bill address the issue of non-consensual image sharing?
The online safety bill aims to modernize the law on sharing intimate images without consent. It introduces a new “base offense” in England and Wales, making it illegal to share an intimate image of a person without their consent – even if the perpetrator does not believe they have consented. Currently, such offenses only apply if the image is shared to cause humiliation or distress. The new base offense will apply regardless of the perpetrator’s motivation, including if they share the image as a joke, for social status, financial gain, or “without any motivation at all.”
