UK investigation to determine if TikTok fails to protect children from harmful content

The UK's online regulator, Ofcom, has launched a formal investigation into TikTok. Ofcom is concerned that TikTok's methods for inferring users' ages are ineffective, potentially exposing children to harmful content like self-harm, suicide, and pornography. This investigation comes nearly a year after the Online Safety Act came into effect, which mandates protections for children online. TikTok states it uses date of birth entry and technology-based "signals" to verify ages and believes it meets its obligations. Ofcom has also expressed doubts about other platforms using similar age inference techniques and is working with search engines to address children's easy access to pornography sites without age checks.

The UK government has proposed a voluntary overnight social media curfew for 16- and 17-year-olds. This measure, announced by the Labour administration, would implement a default six-hour lockout from midnight to 6 am on platforms like Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube. Additionally, features such as autoplay videos and infinite scrolling would be deactivated by default for this age group. This initiative follows a previous announcement of a ban on social media for children under 16, set to take effect in 2027. The government stated that the voluntary approach for older teens aims to encourage better sleep and focus, while avoiding outright bans. This move aligns with a growing global trend of governments implementing restrictions on young people's social media access.

The government is extending its social media ban for under-16s to include a new overnight curfew for 16- and 17-year-olds. This plan aims to reduce online harms by blocking certain social media apps by default from midnight to 6 am. However, the curfew is not mandatory, and teenagers will have the option to opt out. The article questions the effectiveness of this policy given its non-compulsory nature. Social affairs correspondent Jessica Murray discusses the initiative.

The UK government, through Labour's initiative, will encourage 16 and 17-year-olds to observe a midnight to 6 am social media curfew starting next spring. This measure aims to protect young people from online harms, particularly poor sleep due to night-time scrolling. The curfew will be switched on by default for certain apps but will be non-mandatory and overrideable, extending previous restrictions for under-16s. Features designed to keep users engaged, like auto-playing videos, will also be disabled by default for this age group. While the government cites research suggesting curfews improve sleep and focus, campaign groups criticize the measures as insufficient and "piecemeal." The government is also planning regular breaks for under-18s using chatbots.