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Ofcom has imposed a £1 million fine on AVS Group Ltd for inadequate age verification measures on its adult websites, marking the largest penalty handed out so far under the Online Safety Act. This legislation requires sites hosting pornographic content to implement what Ofcom defines as “highly effective age assurance,” aimed at blocking children from accessing explicit material easily. Alongside the main fine, AVS Group Ltd was also penalized £50,000 for failing to comply with requests for information from the regulator.
The regulator has given AVS a 72-hour deadline to enhance their age verification systems to meet the mandated standards. Failure to comply within this timeframe will result in an additional daily fine of £1,000. Ofcom’s enforcement actions reflect a shift in the approach to online safety. Oliver Griffiths, director of Ofcom’s online safety group, emphasized the progress made this year in protecting children from harmful content across various digital platforms but warned that more robust measures are expected from technology companies in the future. “We need to see much more from tech companies next year and we’ll use our full powers if they fall short,” he said.
The Online Safety Act, currently being rolled out in stages, addresses previous concerns about the digital environment being “unregulated, unaccountable and often unwilling to prioritise people’s safety over profits,” according to Ofcom. Apart from the fine against AVS Group Ltd, the regulator also disclosed it is working with an unnamed major social media company on compliance issues and indicated that enforcement action might follow if improvements are not observed promptly. Additionally, the introduction of stricter age checks for pornography websites came into effect in July, though some critics note these can be circumvented using virtual private networks (VPNs).
Other enforcement efforts under the Act include fines against companies failing to implement proper age verification, such as applications that use “deepfake nudify” technology. Nonetheless, the online message board 4Chan has resisted compliance, refusing to pay a £20,000 fine issued earlier this year. The Act also introduced stricter rules aimed at improving internet safety for women and girls, with Ofcom pledging to publicly identify platforms that do not adhere to these guidelines. Despite these measures, some critics maintain that the legislation needs to be strengthened further to ensure a safer online space, particularly for vulnerable groups
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