Online Safety Act 2023
| Act of Parliament | |
| Long title | An Act to make provision for and in connection with the regulation by Ofcom of certain internet services; for and in connection with communications offences; and for connected purposes. |
|---|---|
| Citation | 2023 c. 50 |
| Introduced by | Michelle Donelan, Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology (Commons) Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Arts and Heritage (Lords) |
| Territorial extent | United Kingdom (most parts) Great Britain (certain parts) |
| Dates | |
| Royal assent | 26 October 2023 |
| Commencement | On royal assent and by regulations. |
Status: Current legislation | |
| History of passage through Parliament | |
| Text of statute as originally enacted | |
| Text of the Online Safety Act 2023 as in force today (including any amendments) within the United Kingdom, from legislation.gov.uk. | |
The Online Safety Act 2023 (OSA) (c. 50) is an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom to regulate online content. It was passed on 26 October 2023 and gives the relevant secretary of state the power to designate, suppress, and record a wide range of online content that they deem illegal or harmful to children.
The act creates a new duty of care for online platforms, requiring them to take action against illegal content, or legal content that could be harmful to children where children are likely to access it. Platforms failing this duty would be liable to fines of up to £18 million or 10% of their annual turnover, whichever is higher. It also empowers Ofcom to block access to particular websites. However, it obliges large social media platforms not to remove, and to preserve access to, journalistic or "democratically important" content such as user comments on political parties and issues.
The act also requires platforms – including end-to-end encrypted message providers – to scan for child pornography and terrorism content, which experts say is not possible to implement without undermining users' privacy. The government has said it does not intend to enforce this provision of the act until it becomes "technically feasible" to do so. The act also obliges technology platforms to introduce systems that will allow users to better filter out the harmful content they do not want to see.
The legislation has drawn criticism both within the UK and overseas from politicians, academics, journalists and human rights organisations, who say that it poses a threat to the right to privacy and freedom of speech and expression. Supporters of the act say it is necessary for child protection.