Major changes to the draft Online Safety Bill were put forward by a government committee today.
In a summary of its findings, the Joint Committee for the Online Safety Bill said Big Tech has “failed its chance to self-regulate”, so this Bill will make the internet safer for all with new measures.
Changes include introducing new criminal offences for “harmful online activities” like cyberflashing, encouraging serious self-harm, sending flashing images to people with photo-sensitive epilepsy with intent to induce a seizure and communications stirring up hatred on the grounds of protected characteristics.
This would make online crimes as punishable as offline crimes and sanction internet service providers for abuse that takes place on their platforms like child abuse, fraud, racist abuse, promoting self harm and also against violence against women.
It also recommended Ofcom should issue binding codes of practice to set “minimum safety standards” for the services they regulate so they can better help identify, report and take enforcement action on illegal content.
Also more statutory requirements were recommended to be put in place to prevent children from accessing pornographic content defined by the “Age Appropriate Design Code”.
Damian Collins MP, chair of the Joint Committee on the draft Online Safety Bill, said: “The Committee were unanimous in their conclusion that we need to call time on the Wild West online. What’s illegal offline should be regulated online.
“For too long, Big Tech has gotten away with being the land of the lawless. A lack of regulation online has left too many people vulnerable to abuse, fraud, violence and in some cases even loss of life.”
“The era of self-regulation for big tech has come to an end. The companies are clearly responsible for services they have designed and profit from, and need to be held to account for the decisions they make”, he added.
The Bill is due to be put to Parliament for final approval in 2022.
Today the sub-committee will also consider aspects of Australian legislation, like its News Media Bargaining Code which tried to make large tech companies pay local news outlets as well as its ability to fine individual trolls to “inform the upcoming UK Online Safety Bill.”
