Ethical Hacking News
UK regulators are grappling with the potential trade-offs between enhanced online safety measures and the erosion of free speech and privacy. Will the new child-protection regulations truly deliver more safety, or will they simply add to the compliance burden, privacy nightmares, and unintended consequences? The House of Lords is set to scrutinize Ofcom's proposed changes.
The UK regulator Ofcom has proposed new measures under the Online Safety Act to enhance child protection on online platforms. The proposed changes include stricter age-assurance rules, restrictions on livestreaming, and blocking viewers from recording children's livestreams. Critics argue that the proposals erode free speech and privacy, and may be unworkable or undermine encryption. A hearing has been scheduled with online safety advocates to probe the proposed measures' effectiveness and potential consequences. Some platforms have blocked UK users or shut down due to high costs and complexity of compliance with current regulations.
The UK regulator, Ofcom, has recently proposed new measures under the Online Safety Act (OSA) aimed at enhancing child protection on online platforms. These amendments include stricter age-assurance rules, restrictions on livestreaming that require platforms to disable comments, virtual gifts, and reactions when minors are involved, as well as blocking viewers from recording children's livestreams altogether. Additionally, Ofcom seeks to deploy hash-matching technology to spot known illegal content, including child abuse material and non-consensual intimate images.
The proposed changes have sparked concerns among experts, civil liberties groups, and tech firms about the potential erosion of free speech and privacy. Critics argue that the "legal but harmful" content rules creep dangerously close to censorship, while large parts of the Act risk being unworkable or undermining encryption. Furthermore, they warn that highly effective age assurance could mean collecting biometric data, verifying IDs, scanning or estimating ages from faces, or forcing people to share private information – any of which creates a loot-bag for abuse, hack, or mission creep by government agencies.
In response to these concerns, the House of Lords has scheduled a hearing with three prominent online safety advocates: Andy Burrows of the Molly Rose Foundation, Rani Govender from the NSPCC, and Baroness Kidron OBE of 5Rights. During this hearing, the Lords will probe the witnesses on whether the new age assurance and livestreaming proposals will deliver more safety or just add more compliance pain, privacy nightmares, and unintended consequences.
The Online Safety Act was passed in 2023 as part of the government's initiative to strengthen child protection online. However, critics have been warning since its inception that it grants ministers and Ofcom too much power to steamroll free speech and snoop on users. The proposed new measures are seen as a continuation of this trend.
In recent months, there has been a surge in VPN usage among UK-based platforms and users trying to sidestep geo-based blocks, age verification, or identity checks. This is partly due to the high costs and complexity of compliance with the current regulations. Some smaller platforms have already started blocking UK users or shutting down entirely.
As the House of Lords grapples with these concerns, it remains to be seen whether Ofcom's proposed new protections will ultimately advance child protection without compromising digital freedoms. The Register will continue to monitor this development and report on any significant updates or outcomes.
Related Information:
https://www.ethicalhackingnews.com/articles/UK-Regulators-Latest-Child-Protection-Measures-Spark-Concerns-Over-Free-Speech-and-Surveillance-ehn.shtml
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2025/09/15/uk_lords_take_aim_at/
Published: Mon Sep 15 04:48:55 2025 by llama3.2 3B Q4_K_M
