Under the new Online Safety Bill, social media sites, websites, apps, and other services that host user-generated content or allow people to talk to others online that fail to remove and limit the spread of such harmful content will face fines of up to £18 million or ten per cent of their annual global turnover.
“We are giving internet users the protection they deserve and are working with companies to tackle some of the abuses happening on the web. “We will not allow child sexual abuse, terrorist material, and other harmful content to fester on online platforms. “Tech companies must put public safety first or face the consequences,” Home Secretary Priti Patel said, as quoted in the official statement.
Digital Secretary Oliver Dowden said that with the introduction of the new regulations the UK is setting the global standard for safety online.The new regulations, which will apply to any company hosting user-generated content online that can be accessed by people in the UK or enables them to interact with others online, will establish different responsibilities for each tech company, based on a categorized approach.