Websites that host pornographic or other harmful content must have “robust” age verification in place for UK users by July at the latest, Ofcom has said.
In a new round of guidance ahead of the enforcement of the Online Safety Act, the regulator warned companies that allow adult content they will need to bring in measures to prove a user is not a child.
It added that services which host their own pornographic content “must begin taking steps immediately” to bring in age checks.
Other “user-to-user” services, such as social media, which allow pornography and certain other types of content harmful to children, will have to enforce the age checks by July.
Ofcom chief executive Dame Melanie Dawes said on Thursday: “For too long, many online services which allow porn and other harmful material have ignored the fact that children are accessing their services.
“Either they don’t ask or, when they do, the checks are minimal and easy to avoid. That means companies have effectively been treating all users as if they’re adults, leaving children potentially exposed to porn and other types of harmful content. Today, this starts to change.
“As age checks start to roll out in the coming months, adults will start to notice a difference in how they access certain online services,” Dame Melanie said.
“Those companies that fail to meet these new requirements can expect to face enforcement action from Ofcom.”
In a “non-exhaustive” list, the regulator said online platforms could use the following methods to verify a user’s age:
• Open banking
• Photo ID matching
• Facial age estimation
• Mobile network operator age checks
• Credit card checks
• Digital identity services
• Email-based age estimation
All social media or search engines will also have to carry out an assessment to see if their services are likely to be accessed by children by 16 April.
Ofcom said the new guidance is “the next step” in implementing the Online Safety Act, which passed into law in October 2023.
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New criminal offences created under its remit – including intimate image abuse (revenge porn) and encouraging or assisting serious self-harm – came into effect in January last year.
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In January 2023, research from the Children’s Commissioner for England found that on average, a child first sees online pornography at 13 years old.
