The UK Alliance Tackling Online CSEA (UK ATOC), made up of the IWF, NSPCC, Save the Children, the Lucy Faithfull Foundation, the UK Safer Internet Centre, Childnet, the Marie Collins Foundation, SWGfL and the Centre of Expertise on Child Sexual Abuse, has responded to the UK Government's announcement of a social media ban for under-16s. While the alliance welcomes the Government's recognition that a ban alone cannot tackle the full scale of online harm to children, it sets out why lasting protection depends on a wider, system-wide approach, including stronger safeguards for encrypted environments, safety-by-design requirements for online services, and a strengthened Online Safety Act. The response includes a detailed table mapping how different interventions, from the social media ban to nudity detection and CSAM blocking technologies, contribute to tackling specific online harms such as grooming, sexual extortion and image-based abuse.
The UK and US lead the charge in global efforts to combat online child exploitation through stronger safeguards and innovative technologies.
Children in the UK who are worried that nude pictures and videos may end up online will be able to report the material to help prevent it from being uploaded in the future.
Explore IWF's 2024 findings on child sexual abuse imagery hosted in the UK, highlighting removal efforts and the importance of rapid takedown actions.
Britain will make it illegal to use artificial intelligence tools that create child sexual abuse images.
National Crime Agency and safety watchdog issue guidance amid rise in explicit material online.
IWF's work in UK policy. Includes Recent Policy Briefs and Consultations.
Ofcom launched an investigation into the Telegram messaging app after evidence suggested child sexual abuse material was being shared on the platform.