Britain has its first internet watchdog, as broadcasting regulator Ofcom takes on new powers to hold online platforms such as Facebook and Twitter accountable for illegal and harmful content. 

As the Financial Times reports, the move follows the UK government’s ‘Online Harms’ regulation. Still under construction, the legislation would place a duty of care on large technology companies to target content from terrorist groups, online disinformation campaigns, and pedophile networks, as well as content that can "cause serious harm."

Ofcom will decide how and when those companies have breached their duties, and choose what punishment should be incurred. Sky News reports that there has been “no confirmation of what punishments or fines the bolstered regulator will be able to hand out.”

Talking to the BBC, Facebook said that it had "long called" for new regulation, and was "looking forward to carrying on the discussion."

In a statement, Digital Secretary Baroness Morgan said: "We will give the regulator the powers it needs to lead the fight for an internet that remains vibrant and open but with the protections, accountability and transparency people deserve." She also said that the measures will only apply to websites that allow sharing user-generated content, and thus this regulation will affect fewer than 5 percent of all UK businesses.

However, not all areas of the government are pleased with the new legislation. The chair of the DCMS (Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport) committee Julian Knight reportedly said that the new powers “fail to demonstrate urgency” and that regulators needed “the clout to disrupt the activities of businesses that fail to comply, and ultimately, the threat of a prison sentence for breaking the law."

Punchy alert. New chair of the DCMS committee Julian Knight goes after government's Ofcom announcement: "Today’s statement fails to demonstrate the urgency that is required... The regulator must take a muscular approach and be able to enforce change through sanctions that bite"

— Mark Di Stefano (@MarkDiStef) February 12, 2020

Tracy Brabin, Labour's shadow digital secretary, told Sky News it was "shameful" that this legislation had been taken so slowly. "Today's proposals are long overdue, and nothing short of legislation will reassure families that their loved ones are safe online," she said.

Criticis of the regulation have also warned against its potential effects on free speech. The Internet Association, which represents global internet companies including Facebook, Google, Amazon, Reddit, Twitter, has said in the past that this legislation could "hurt the British tech sector, worsen the quality of internet services for ordinary consumers, undermine privacy, and produce a chilling effect on freedom of speech." Speaking to Sky News today, the Association said that it was keen to debate "issues of concern that are still under review."

Social media sites have struggled against harmful content propogating on their platforms. Facebook has not adequately dealt with hate speech and harassment while Twitter allowed adverts to be microtargeted at neo-nazis in the face of repeated criticism that the social media site has not done enough to fight white supremacy on its platform. Whether or not this regulation will be enough to challenge such ingrained issues remains to be seen.

This is not the only legislation that the British government has tried to enact in the name of making a safer internet. The controversial 'porn ban,' which would have required citizens wanting to look at pornographic content online to buy a license for it, was on the cards for seven years, but was eventually canceled (for now.)

Further Reading

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