Online Safety Act
What is the Online Safety Act?
The Online Safety Act 2023 is a set of laws introduced to protect children and adults online. Ofcom is the regulator for online safety in the UK, responsible for ensuring companies follow the new rules. As part of this role, Ofcom have designed the Children Codes of practice, which came into force in July 2025. The codes outline what all online services likely to be accessed by children must do to protect children online, for example:
Enforce age limits.
Protect children from accessing harmful or age-inappropriate content. This includes content relating to self-harm and eating disorders.
Ensure users can easily report harmful content.
Ofcom has the power to enforce the rules as well as issue fines if companies fail to comply. You can find out more here: https://www.ofcom.org.uk/online-safety/protecting-children/new-rules-for- a-safer-generation-of-children-online
How will it help to protect my child?
One of the main purposes of the Act is to protect children online. Ofcom has published information on how they are helping children to be safer online. The first link is a guide for parents, which also includes a section on what you can do as a parent. You can access this information here:
Further information
Online Safety Act: explainer: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/online-safety-act-explainer/online-safety-act-explainer
