3 days ago
4Chan being investigated by UK officials under new online safety rules
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4Chan, an online forum notorious for its extreme content, is being investigated by UK officials over its failure to comply with new internet safety rules.
Ofcom, the UK's communications regulator, said it had received complaints about potential illegal content on 4Chan, as it announced nine new investigations into sites that may have broken new rules.
A porn site and seven file sharing websites are also being investigated.
Under the new Online Safety Act, porn sites must develop strict age verification processes for users.
Websites where people can see content shared by others, like 4Chan or social media, need to assess the risk of UK users encountering illegal content on their platforms.
4Chan has not submitted any such assessment, according to the regulator.
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The seven file-sharing services have also been reported for the possible sharing of child sexual abuse material.
Ofcom is also investigating whether porn site First Time Videos appropriately vets the age of its users.
By July, sites hosting age-restricted content must have a "robust" age verification process in place.
The rules have faced criticism from campaigners in the past for not going far enough.
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Mariano Janin, whose teenage daughter Mia killed herself after being bullied online, told Sky News in April that the new rules are "too small, too little, too slow".
In Australia, officials have taken dramatic action to try and deal with online harms for young people, and from December, under-16s will be banned from social media.
