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The Online Safety Bill is a new forthcoming UK law, bringing in wide-ranging rules to protect individuals online. The Online Safety Bill will bring into force several new stringent legal obligations for businesses. The consequences for breaching the law will be severe. This article will explain what the Bill is and some of the key issues for businesses to be aware of.
What Does the Online Safety Bill Seek to Achieve?
The Online Safety Bill is extremely ambitious. The Bill aims to make the UK the ‘safest place in the world to be online’ by setting out significant rules to protect both children and adults online. When passed into law, it will have a huge impact on service providers who fall within its scope. A key aim of this law is to make social media more responsible for user safety when using their platforms.
In terms of who needs to comply, the Bill will govern businesses that provide online ‘user-to-user services’. For example, businesses that are suppliers of internet services that allow users to share user-generated content will be impacted by the law. Likewise, businesses that provide online search services, such as Google, will be impacted by the law.
Examples of businesses that will be expected to comply with the Online Safety Bill are:
- social media platforms;
- search engines;
- gaming services;
- dating apps;
- messaging services; and
- online forums.
The Online Safety Bill will impact several different types of businesses, from different industries and of different sizes. Further, the law will also apply to certain international businesses with UK-based users.
The Bill will apply different rules to different types of service providers. These service providers will be categorised based on two key factors. Firstly, the size of their online presence. Secondly, the risks their platforms pose to UK citizens. Businesses will need to carefully consult the rules to determine what their obligations are.
Key Obligations the Online Safety Bill Imposes
Some key obligations introduced by the Online Safety Bill include the obligation to:
- remove illegal content and work to prevent it from appearing in the first place;
- carry out age-verification and risk assessments and prevent children from accessing harmful content;
- give parents and children clear and accessible ways to report problems arising online; and
- make sure that the risks and dangers to children on the largest social media platforms are more transparent.
Whilst the Bill tackles crucial issues around online safety, its new set of rules will likely be very onerous for businesses to comply with in practice.
Failing to comply with the rules under the Bill could result in extremely severe penalties, such as fines of up to £18 million or 10% of a business’ annual turnover, whichever is higher. Further, failing to comply with the Bill could lead to criminal prosecution. Therefore, compliance with these rules is critical, and businesses should take the Online Safety Bill extremely seriously.
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What Should Businesses Do To Prepare For the Online Safety Bill?
We are currently waiting for the Bill to receive royal assent, following which it will become law. This is expected to happen in late October 2023. Various codes of practice will also be published around the Online Safety Bill, setting out standards for businesses to comply with.
Although the law is not yet in force, it is highly advisable for affected businesses to start to plan ahead.
Businesses should consider:
- determining whether their business activities and platforms fall within the scope of the Bill and if they will need to comply with its rules;
- reviewing the rules brought in by the Online Safety Bill and considering how those rules may necessitate the need to change business practices;
- considering if their platforms will be accessed by children and, if so, what additional measures will need to be put in place to comply with the Bill’s requirements;
- beginning to review platforms, policies and systems and the functionalities around them, including how easily content can be removed;
- closely monitoring and following developments on the Online Safety Bill and its progress; and
- taking legal advice on the implications of the Bill.
This checklist will help you identify areas in your business that may need further protection or assistance to ensure you are legally compliant.
Key Takeaways
The Online Safety Bill is a forthcoming new law that will introduce several new obligations for businesses caught by its scope. UK digital businesses should carefully consider the Online Safety Bill, which obligations will apply to them and what internal procedures and procedures they will need to change to ensure compliance. Compliance with the Online Safety Bill requires significant time and resources, and businesses should closely monitor developments around this new law.
If you need help understanding the Online Safety Bill and how it applies to your business, contact our experienced IT lawyers as part of our LegalVision membership. For a low monthly fee, you will have unlimited access to lawyers to answer your questions and draft and review your documents. Call us today on 0808 196 8584 or visit our membership page.
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