The UK wants to be the safest place for children to grow up online. Many UK lawmakers say the only way to ensure that future is to criminalize tech leaders whose platforms aren't known for protecting children. The UK House of Commons reached a deal today to satisfy those lawmakers, Reuters reports, and Prime Minister Rishi Suna's government has agreed to amend the Internet Security Act to ensure its passage. It now appears that tech executives caught "intentionally" publishing harmful content for children could soon face fines and up to two years in prison.
They reached an agreement on the remaining steps of the security bill ahead of a vote in the House of Commons. It will then go to the House of Lords for consideration, and the BBC says it "still has a long way to go". Sunak said he would amend the bill to include the new language before it goes to the House of Lords, where lawmakers will have more opportunity to review the wording.
The report says that technical managers of platforms that host user-generated content will only be held responsible if they do not take "proportionate measures" to prevent children from being exposed to harmful content, such as sexually offensive material. Confusion and self-esteem. - damages Some of the steps tech companies can take to avoid jail time and fines of up to 10% of the company's revenue include providing age verification, parental controls, and content controls.
If the Internet Safety Act is passed, executives will be responsible for ensuring that tech companies follow their own community guidelines, including content and age restrictions. If internet security obligations are breached, UK media regulator Ofcom will be responsible for prosecuting tech leaders who fail to respond to compliance notices. According to reports, no one who acts in good faith on the part of the police and protects children will go unpunished.
Ars could not immediately reach any major tech companies for comment on the House of Commons deal, but Reuters reported that US executives are closely monitoring updates to the Internet security law.
UK Culture Secretary Michelle Donnellan said in a statement that the change would prevent senior executives from tech companies from ignoring the mandatory requirements of internet security laws, giving Ofcom "an extra opportunity to make changes and make sure people are held to account. do enough." Protect the children."
Last month, Donelan wrote a letter to his parents, calling for the criminalization of any tech leader who "permits or condones" violations of Internet security laws.
"Technology companies have a responsibility to keep young people safe online," Donnellan wrote. "There is no need to change settings or apply filters to protect you or your children from harmful content. Social media companies and Silicon Valley executives must implement these protections on their platforms and face serious legal consequences if they don't."
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