Children’s Commissioner threatens legal action over online safety assessments
The Children’s Commissioner for England has threatened to use her statutory powers to access tech companies’ risk assessments after Ofcom refused her request to see them, she told a House of Lords committee, reports BritPanorama.
Dame Rachel De Souza expressed anger at the online safety regulator, stating that it has told her it “will attempt to stop me getting” the documents. Her inability to obtain these risk assessments has hindered her team’s capacity to evaluate whether the Online Safety Act 2023 has led to meaningful improvements to platforms’ systems and features, she noted during the Communications and Digital Committee session on Tuesday.
Dame Rachel faced questions regarding the effectiveness of the Act, with committee members asking for evidence of any significant improvements to online safety systems beyond merely suppressing harmful content. Her response was clear: “We don’t know. And actually, I say that on purpose because I’m really cross about it.”
She elaborated on the situation, saying, “So, what is the mechanism? Basically, the tech companies supposedly have written risk assessments for Ofcom. There isn’t an outcomes measure; they are completely not transparent.” Despite her position as the country’s most senior safeguarding officer for children, she has been refused access to these vital documents, prompting her to consider invoking her statutory powers.
Dame Rachel requested the committee’s assistance as she plans to pursue this course of action. “If we cannot even see the risk assessments that may well have put these mechanisms into place – or may not have, we don’t know – how on earth can we judge the efficacy of it?”
An Ofcom spokesperson responded, stating, “We work closely with the Children’s Commissioner and share her objectives to ensure children are safe online.” They highlighted that in December, the regulator published its analysis of risk assessments from the past year, detailing expected improvements from platforms. The spokesperson ensured that Ofcom has acted to secure substantial enhancements in risk assessments and compliance from tech companies.
Prior to this, the commissioner had called on Ofcom to take its responsibilities seriously and clamp down on companies allowing inappropriate material on their platforms. “Ofcom needs to show more teeth” and requires political backing, she stated in an interview with Radio 4’s World At One.
During the committee session, Dame Rachel proposed an initiative to communicate directly with every child in the country regarding the Children’s Code, aiming to assess their feelings about online safety. “It’s a simple, straightforward thing that, you know, Ofcom could ask my office to do, or could do themselves. I could help them; I don’t think we need to overthink it,” she said.
The Children’s Code, published in April last year, was described by her as a “massive lost opportunity,” with its objective being to enforce measures that websites and apps must adopt to protect children from harmful content, including age assurance tools and algorithm adjustments to prevent access to illegal and harmful materials.
According to Ofcom, over 27,000 children and 13,000 parents participated in consultations while designing its Children’s Code. The spokesperson added, “We continue to engage regularly with young people and parents to understand children’s experiences online,” underscoring the watchdog’s commitment to enhancing child safety. However, they also acknowledged that the tech industry has considerable work ahead to achieve compliance with safety duties.
This ongoing tension highlights the complex relationship between regulatory bodies and tech companies as they navigate the implementation of the Online Safety Act, reflecting broader concerns about child safety in an increasingly digital world.
