UK police bosses urge unsafe platforms to be blocked for under-16s

UK police chiefs and the National Crime Agency call for blocking children from social, AI, and gaming apps that do not disable high-risk features. They want bans for services that allow contact by strangers, recommend harmful content, and enable sharing nude photos for under-16s. The government supports stronger protections and backs Ofcom to act against firms that fail to comply, including options such as age limits, app curfews, or outright bans. The NCA says the current online environment is not safe for children and that industry action has been too slow. The NPCC describes the online sphere as a “wild west” where regulation has not kept pace. The agencies identify six harm-enabling platform features, including discoverability, unrestricted contact, harmful algorithms, nude image sharing, weak age checks, and access to adult environments.

"Children should be blocked from accessing social, AI and gaming apps which do not disable “high-risk” features such as private messaging, UK police chiefs have said. The National Crime Agency (NCA) and National Police Chiefs' Council (NPCC) said sites that do not prevent children from being contacted by strangers, recommended harmful content and sharing nude photos should be banned for under-16s."

"The government said tech firms must protect children online and it backs regulator Ofcom “to act against those who fail to comply”. “We are going further - consulting on options from age limits and app curfews to outright bans,” a government spokesperson added. “We also remain committed to making it impossible for children in the UK to take, share or view nude images, and are working at pace to deliver this.”"

"But NCA director general Graeme Biggar said “our assessment is clear: the online environment in its current form is not safe for children”. “The industry response has been too slow, while the problem has been getting worse,” he said in a statement. “Enough is enough.” Chief constable Gavin Stephens, chair of the NPCC, added the online sphere had become “something of a wild west” in which law and regulation had “failed to keep up with the pace of technology”."

"The NCA and NPCC identified six features of platforms they believe enable “harm at-scale” and should not be present on apps or services used by children. Mass discoverability of children. Unrestricted contact from unknown adults. Private or encrypted messaging. Algorithms that promote harmful and illegal content. Nude image sharing or streaming. Weak age checks allowing children to easily access adult environments."

Read at www.bbc.com