Poppy Bilderbeck
Pornography websites in the UK will soon be legally required to verify users' ages.
Today, February 8, UK government ministers are set to announce the strengthening of the Online Safety Bill in a bid to crackdown on pornographic sites being accessed by anyone who is underage.
All platforms will now be required to perform 'robust checks' to combat the use of such sites by those who are under the age of 18.
Concerns over data security, technical difficulties and a series of delays meant that age verification on porn websites was unable to be enforced in 2019, despite it having first been introduced under the Digital Economy Act in 2017, BBC News reports.
However, digital minister Chris Philip has confirmed the plans will go ahead this time round. 'Parents deserve peace of mind that their children are protected online from seeing things no child should see,' he said.
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Users will now be asked to confirm their age using a third-party service or to prove they own a credit card.
Studies revealed that porn had been viewed by 50% of 11-13 year olds.
Andy Burrows, of the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC), said 'it's right the government has listened to calls to fix one of the gaps in the Online Safety Bill and protect children from pornography wherever it's hosted'.
Burrows said the government had 'also acted on our concerns and closed the 'Only Fans loophole' that would have let some of the riskiest sites off the hook despite allowing children access to extremely damaging material'.
Up until now, the Online Safety Bill only included commercial porn sites with content generated by users, iNews reports. However, all commercial porn sites will now be subject to the regulations.
Websites that don't adhere to the new rules could face a fine of 10% of their global turnover.
If bosses of such sites refuse to cooperate they could be held criminally liable, and their platforms could even be banned by regulator Ofcom from being accessed in the UK.
While acknowledging the improvements made to the legislation, Burrows said it 'still falls short of giving children comprehensive protection from preventable abuse and harmful content and needs significant strengthening to match the government's rhetoric and focus minds at the very top of tech companies on child safety'.
Jim Killock, member of Open Rights Group, which fights for the preservation of digital freedoms and rights, also noted the bill's 'little practical benefit for child safety, and much harm to people's privacy'.
'There is no indication that this proposal will protect people from tracking and profiling porn viewing. We have to assume the same basic mistakes about privacy and security may be about to be made again,' he said.
However, executive director of the Age Verification Providers Association, Ian Corby, concluded: 'By using independent, third-party organisations which are audited and certified to comply with the highest standards of data protection and security, adults can be confident their own privacy will be preserved while their children are protected.'
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