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Britain's media and privacy regulators are turning up the heat on major social media companies, demanding stronger measures to prevent children from accessing platforms that were never designed for them. Ofcom and the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) have raised serious concerns that these platforms are consistently failing to enforce their own minimum age policies, leaving young users vulnerable to harmful and addictive algorithmic content.
The pressure comes as the UK government actively explores banning under-16s from social media entirely, following Australia's recent move to implement similar restrictions. Ofcom chief executive Melanie Dawes issued a stark warning, stating that platforms are failing to prioritize children's safety and that immediate change is required, or regulatory action will follow.
Under the latest enforcement phase of Britain's Online Safety Act, Ofcom has given Meta's Facebook and Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, Snapchat, and Roblox until April 30 to demonstrate concrete improvements. These include tightening age verification processes, preventing unknown adults from contacting minors, cleaning up algorithmic content feeds, and halting the practice of testing new features on underage users.
The ICO issued a parallel open letter to the same platforms, urging them to deploy modern, effective age-assurance technology to block children under 13 from accessing services not intended for them. ICO chief executive Paul Arnold emphasized that advanced tools are now readily available, eliminating any justification for inaction.
Both regulators carry significant enforcement power. Ofcom can impose fines reaching up to 10% of a company's global qualifying revenue, while the ICO can levy penalties of up to 4% of annual global turnover. The ICO recently demonstrated this authority by fining Reddit nearly £14.5 million for failing to implement adequate age verification measures and for unlawfully processing children's personal data.
