Rebecca has warmly welcomed the rollout of new age verification requirements, which will restrict access to online pornography under provisions of the Online Safety Act. Describing the changes as 'a vital and long-overdue step to keep children safe in the digital age', Rebecca praised the new measures for finally bringing a measure of control to a part of the internet that has, for too long, operated without effective safeguards.
Under the provisions of the Online Safety Act – one of the most far-reaching pieces of legislation passed by the last Conservative Government – websites hosting pornographic content are now legally required to ensure that users are 18 or over by using age verification or estimation technology.
If sites fail to act, the independent regulator Ofcom will be able to issue fines of up to £18 million or 10% of their global annual revenue, whichever is greater – meaning the biggest platforms could face penalties running into billions of Pounds. Pornhub and a number of other major adult websites have already confirmed they will introduce enhanced age checks for users by 25 July in accordance with the law.
Rebecca, who has long supported tougher action to protect children from harmful content online, said the changes mark the beginning of the end of an era in which children have been freely exposed to violent, degrading and harmful pornographic material. Citing studies showing the average age of first exposure in the UK is now just 13, she described the current situation as one we would "look back on in horror".
Rebecca has stressed her strong support for the new age verification rules, noting that they deliver on the long-standing calls from parents across the country. She said she had no doubt that “huge numbers of children” would now be protected from the known harms linked to early exposure to pornography – and described the Online Safety Act as “a legacy of which the last Conservative Government can be justifiably proud”.
Rebecca has engaged with child protection campaigners, mental health professionals and charities, all of whom have warned that early exposure to extreme pornography can distort young people’s understanding of relationships, body image and consent. We would never tolerate children walking into adult video stores. That same protection must and will now apply in the digital realm.
Looking ahead, Rebecca has hailed these new measures as a landmark moment in the effort to create a safer, more responsible internet - but has also recognised that there is of course more to do. Accordingly, Rebecca has urged Ofcom to enforce the new powers robustly and called on tech companies to take their responsibilities seriously.
She has pledged her ongoing support for any additional measures that would go even further towards keeping young people safe from material that can cause lasting psychological and emotional harm.
