Ofcom has warned social media companies they will be punished if they fail to take significant extra steps to address the problem of children pretending to be adults online. A newly released survey, conducted by the UK media regulator, indicates 22% of eight to 17-year-olds lie that they are 18 or over on social media apps. This is despite the Online Safety Act (OSA) requiring platforms to beef-up age verification, a responsibility that will come into force in 2025. Ofcom told the BBC its “alarming” findings showed tech firms had lots to do to meet that new legal standard – and said they would face enforcement action if they failed to do so. It said children being able to pass for adults increased their risk of being exposed to harmful content. “Platforms need to do much, much more to know the age of their children online,” Ian Mccrae, Director of Market Intelligence at Ofcom, said. He added 2025 was a “huge year” in which there should be a “real step change in online safety.” He said Ofcom would “take action” if firms didn’t comply with the OSA, pointing out that the legislation allowed for companies to be fined 10% of their global revenue.
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