- Ofcom has fined major adult-only platform £1 million over age verification
- AVS Group Ltd hit with an additional £50,000 fee for failing to respond
- An unnamed social media platform could also soon face “formal action”
The UK’s communications regulator, Ofcom, has fined a major adult platform £1 million for non-compliance with its age verification rules.
AVS Group Ltd, which is the company behind 18 websites, was also served an additional £50,000 fee for failing to respond to information requests.
“While AVS has implemented what it refers to as age verification, we do not consider it to be highly effective,” said Ofcom. The regulator has given the company a 72-hour deadline to implement more effective age assurance or face further fines of up to £1,000 per day.
Mandatory age verification landed in the UK last July as part of the Online Safety Act. Under the rules, all websites and apps displaying content deemed “harmful for minors” are required to verify their users’ age.
Intended to boost children’s safety online, age checks have sparked significant privacy concerns among many, with people turning to VPN services in a bid to protect their personal data.
Today’s announcement coincides with the publication of Ofcom’s first report on how the online safety landscape is evolving under the Online Safety Act, in which the regulator acknowledged that more information is needed on VPNs.
Ofcom to strength its grip on age checks
AVS Group Ltd isn’t the only company currently on Ofcom’s radar and there are suggestions that further fines may be on the way.
Among these, Ofcom has mentioned an unnamed major social media platform which it says is at risk of getting hit with formal action if no improvements are made.
Ofcom also said it has also expanded the scope of its investigation into 4chan. The controversial blog site previously confirmed to the BBC that it had refused to pay Ofcom’s daily fines.
Commenting on the regulator’s work, Ofcom’s Online Safety Group Director, Oliver Griffiths, said: “The tide on online safety is beginning to turn for the better. This year has seen important changes for people, with new measures across many sites and apps now better protecting children from harmful content. But we need to see much more from tech companies next year, and we’ll use our full powers if they fall short.”
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