Publishing & social media

Ofcom consults on guidance about animal cruelty and human torture content online

News • August 14, 2024

Ofcom is consulting on strengthening its draft illegal terms of practice and guidance under the Online Safety Act 2023, specifying animal cruelty and human torture as new types of content platforms must tackle. Under the Act, when new legal duties on platforms come into force, tech firms will have to assess the risk of illegal…

Ofcom fines TikTok £1.875 million for providing inaccurate data on safety controls

News • July 29, 2024

Ofcom has fined TikTok £1.875 million for failing to accurately respond to a formal request for information about its parental controls safety feature. Under the Communications Act 2003., organisations regulated by Ofcom must respond to all statutory information requests from Ofcom in an accurate, complete and timely way. This includes providing accurate and complete information….

This Week’s Techlaw News Round-up

News • June 7, 2024

UK law Data Protection and Digital Information Bill lost in Parliament wash-up period The Data Protection and Digital Information Bill was lost in the “wash-up” period that preceded the prorogation of Parliament on Friday 24 May 2024 and its dissolution on 30 May 2024. This was due to the UK general election that will be…

Media Bill receives Royal Assent

News • June 6, 2024

The Media Act 2024 received Royal Assent on 24 May. It was fast-tracked through the UK Parliament as part of the “wash-up” period before parliament was dissolved in anticipation of the General Election in July. It had been introduced to Parliament on 8 November 2023. The Act aims to update media regulation for the digital…

This Week’s Techlaw News Round-up

News • May 24, 2024

UK law DMCC Bill completes parliamentary process and other “wash-up” news The Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Bill has completed the parliamentary process ahead of the 2024 General Election and will receive Royal Assent on 24 May. At the time of writing, it looks as if the Media Bill may also complete the process as…

European Commission takes action against Meta under the Digital Services Act

News • May 21, 2024

The European Commission has opened formal proceedings to assess if Meta (Facebook/Instagram) may have breached the Digital Services Act with regards to the protection of minors. The Commission is concerned that Facebook and Instagram’s systems, including their algorithms, may promote behavioural addictions in children, as well as create so-called ‘rabbit-hole effects’. In addition, the Commission…

This Week’s Techlaw News Round-up

News • May 10, 2024

UK law Automated Vehicles Bill ready for Royal Assent The Automated Vehicles Bill returned to the House of Lords to consider the House of Commons amendments. The House of Commons had proposed 11 amendments to Clauses 40, 43, 89, 93 and 100, as well as amendments to Schedule 1. The Bill has now been passed…

Ofcom publishes draft children’s code under Online Safety Act 2023

News • May 8, 2024

Ofcom has published its draft Children’s Safety Codes of Practice, which sets out how it expects online services to meet their legal responsibilities to protect children online. This is the second key consultation under the Online Safety Act and includes Ofcom’s proposals for how internet services that enable the sharing of user-generated content (user-to-user services)…

This Week’s Techlaw News Round-up

News • May 3, 2024

UK law Investigatory Powers (Amendment) Act 2024 receives Royal Assent The Investigatory Powers (Amendment) Act 2024 has received Royal Assent. It updates the Investigatory Powers Act 2016 with the aim of ensuring that the UK’s investigatory powers framework remains fit for purpose in the face of evolving threats. It follows the Home Secretary’s statutory report…

Commission opens formal proceedings against Facebook and Instagram under the Digital Services Act

News • May 2, 2024

The European Commission has opened formal proceedings to assess if Meta (Facebook and Instagram), may have breached the Digital Services Act. As regular SCL readers will be aware, Facebook and Instagram were designated as Very Large Online Platforms (VLOPs) on 25 April 2023 under the DSA, as they both have more than 45 million monthly…