LONDON- UK regulator Ofcom is investigating a suicide forum under the Online Safety Act, marking the first probe of its kind.
The investigation will assess whether the site’s service provider failed to implement “appropriate safety measures” to protect users from illegal content and activity.
This is the first investigation into an individual online service provider under the new laws. Platforms are required to comply with new codes of practice that aim to protect users, especially children, from harmful content, including promoting suicide and self-harm.
The codes, which came into force last month, required platforms to have systems in place to protect users from illegal content. Non-compliance can lead to significant fines or, in serious cases, the blocking of access to the site. Fines could reach up to 18 million euro or 10 per cent of global revenue.
The forum, which had not been named due to its sensitive nature, was linked to at least 50 deaths in the UK, with some reports claiming it was connected to as many as 97 deaths.
The site reportedly had tens of thousands of members who shared information about suicide methods.
Under the new legislation, service providers were required to assess the risks of users encountering illegal content by March 16, including content that could encourage or assist suicide.
Ofcom attempted to engage with the service provider but received limited and unsatisfactory responses, leading to the investigation.
Andy Burrows, CEO of the Molly Rose Foundation, a charity for suicide prevention, called for the site’s immediate closure.
Burrows stressed that every day the site remained online, vulnerable individuals were at risk, urging Ofcom to act decisively to shut it down.(dpa/NAN)
